India wicketkeeper-batter KL Rahul has opted to leave the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2025) mega auction. According to a report from the Times of India, Rahul’s departure is due to professional and personal reasons, despite LSG being prepared to offer him the top retention slot. "LSG were ready to offer top retention bracket to Rahul, but Rahul eventually decided to move on due to personal and professional reasons," a source told the publication.
According to media reports KL Rahul will enter the auction pool, where he is expected to attract competitive bids from various franchises.
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Several franchises, including Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), Gujarat Titans (GT), Rajasthan Royals (RR), and Chennai Super Kings (CSK), have reportedly expressed interest in signing him. "At the moment, there are four franchises who have expressed their interest in him-Royal Challengers Bengaluru, Gujarat Titans, Rajasthan Royals, and the Chennai Super Kings. Expect all four to go hard for him in the auction," a source told TOI.
Rahul was acquired by LSG for Rs 17 crore as a draft pick before the previous mega auction and was appointed the team’s captain for the IPL 2022 season. Under his leadership, the Super Giants reached the playoffs in their first two seasons but struggled in the most recent IPL campaign.
KL Rahul started his IPL journey in 2013 for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (then Bangalore). He played 19 matches for the franchise from 2013-2016. Rahul scored 417 runs at an average of 37.90 and a strike rate of 145.29. However, he was released by the RCB before the 2017 season. Rahul played for Sunrisers Hyderabad and Punjab Kings afterwards before joining Lucknow Super Giants in IPL 2022 as a captain.
