Yash Dayal to miss entire IPL 2026 due to "personal situation", RCB confirms

Royal Challengers Bengaluru have confirmed that Yash Dayal will not be joining the squad for IPL 2026.

RCB Director of Cricket, Mo Bobat, has stated that Dayal will be absent due to personal reasons and will not be participating in the 2026 IPL season.

Dayal has been battling legal trouble over the last year. A first case was filed against him in Ghaziabad on charges of physical exploitation under the false pretext of marriage. A second case, filed in Jaipur under the POCSO Act, accuses Dayal of sexual assault against a minor. The RCB man had applied for anticipatory bail but was denied for the same. His absence from the team bus, posters, and training videos has been noted by fans.

Bobat has furthermore stated that the left-arm pacer remains under contract for RCB but won't feature for them in the upcoming season.

"He's going through a personal situation. He remains under contract,” said Bobat.

Dayal was a key part of RCB’s title-winning campaign in 2025, with 13 wickets. He is a reliable bowler for the middle and death overs, with a key set of variations and slower balls in his arsenal. He joined RCB in the 2024 season after being signed in the auction and picked up 15 wickets in their run to the playoffs.

The UP-born player was one of three players retained by the franchise ahead of the 2025 Mega Auction for INR 5 crore. However, with his absence confirmed for the upcoming season, RCB are unlikely to make any replacement for the cricketer since he remains an active and contracted player in the Rajat Patidar-led squad.

RCB will enter IPL 2026 as defending champions and start their campaign against the Sunrisers Hyderabad on March 28 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru, in a grand tournament opener to the nineteenth edition of the marquee T20 tournament.