![Virat Kohli's IPL 2024 exploits helped him retain his place in T20 WC squad [Source: AFP, X]](https://onecricketnews.akamaized.net/parth-editor/oc-dashboard/news-images-prod/1788174131945_ViratKohli'sIPL2024exploitshelpedhimretainhisplaceinT20WCsquad.jpg?type=hq)
Virat Kohli's IPL 2024 exploits helped him retain his place in T20 WC squad [Source: AFP, X]
Over the years, RCB has become an IPL powerhouse, with teh team winning back-to-back championships. They were always one of the most popular IPL franchises, but before 2025, the side had never tasted success in the league.
It all ended in 2025 when RCB captured their maiden IPL title and became the best team in the country. Over the years, the franchise has also given world-class players to the Indian team, and it has also helped revive the careers of many.
Several players who struggled to make it into the Indian team and were out of favour eventually became a key part of the Indian team and got their cricketing careers back on track.
In this article, we take a look at Indian players who should thank RCB for reviving their cricketing careers.
1) Krunal Pandya
Eyebrows were raised when RCB bought Krunal Pandya for a hefty amount in the IPL 2025 auction. He struggled with the LSG team, and many criticised RCB for making this move. However, two seasons later, the all-rounder has become their biggest match-winner.
The Baroda all-rounder has played 31 games for RCB in the last two seasons, and he has scored 335 runs and, at the same time, has also scalped 31 wickets. As a result, on Monday, reports circulated that the BCCI is once again interested in bringing Krunal back into the T20I team.
He last played for India in 2021, and since then, he has been out of favour. However, that could soon change, all thanks to his domination with the RCB in the IPL.
2) Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli has been India's and RCB’s biggest match-winner for the last 19 years; however, his place in the 2024 T20 World Cup was in jeopardy as the selectors wanted a younger group of players in the squad.
Kohli has been India’s greatest player in T20 World Cups, but ahead of the 2024 edition, there were question marks over his ability to play quickly in the rapidly changing format.
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The champion batter silenced all his doubters in IPL 2024, right before the T20 World Cup. Opening the batting, he played in 15 matches, and scored 741 runs, with an average of 61 and a brilliant strike-rate of 154.70.
The season with RCB gave Indian selectors assurance that Kohli can still play aggressively, and he was asked to open alongside Rohit Sharma in the T20 World Cup 2024, an event that India eventually won.
3) Mohammed Siraj
Mohammed Siraj made his India debut in 2017, but he failed to make his mark. It wasn’t until 2019 that India slowly and steadily started to trust the right-arm seamer, and major credit needs to be given to RCB as well.
Ahead of the 2018 IPL season, Virat Kohli’s RCB bought Siraj in the auction. After an impressive performance, he played his first ODI in 2019, and in 2020, his biggest breakthrough came when he was picked for the away BGT series.
Kohli was the RCB and India captain when Siraj joined the franchise, and he was so impressed with his performances that the then India captain recommended the selectors to pick him in the national side; eventually, Siraj became a key member of the Indian team across formats.
4) Devdutt Padikkal
Devdutt Padikkal made his India T20I debut in 2021 when he was playing for the RCB side, but he was soon dropped by the selectors after a couple of poor performances. In 2024, he made his Test debut against England, and after a decent start, he was once again not trusted by the management.
RCB released him ahead of IPL 2022, and they bought him back ahead of the 2025 season. In the last two campaigns, Padikkal has become a vital player for them at number 3, and his performances were not ignored by the BCCI selectors.
The Karnataka batter once again got his breakthrough in Tests, and he grabbed the opportunity with both hands. He displaced Sai Sudharsan to become the new number 3 in Tests, and who knows where his career would have been had RCB not shown faith in him for the second time.
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