There was no panic at the auction – AB de Villiers lauds RCB’s latest signings

RCB landed a solid mix of players in the IPL 2026 auction, headlined by the likes of Venkatesh Iyer, Jacob Duffy and Jordan Cox, who were signed alongside an exciting Indian crop of youngsters.

RCB Hall of Famer, AB de Villiers, opened up on the think-tank’s auction strategies, underlining how the onboarding of Jordan Cox is an incredible addition to the batting ranks.

He was also highly appreciative of the signings of Iyer and Mangesh Yadav, making a massive future prediction.

Talking on his YouTube channel, de Villiers said, “There was no panic at the auction and no surprise with it. They are the defending champions, and there's a reason for that, and you don't want to change the winning recipe. Jordan Cox is a good signing. Bit of a backup. I don't know how much he will play but a very talented youngster. Venky Iyer is the big signing. They got him at a very big discount.”

He concluded with a very special praise for Mangesh Yadav, stating, “The main one I want to talk about is Mangesh Yadav. Backup for Yash Dayal, maybe he will be more than a backup. Also Jacob Duffy was a nice backup for Hazlewood. It is a championship winning squad. Maybe a little bit lacking in the X factor spin department. Would have been nice to see another wrist-spinner. But I feel RCB have a chance to defend the title.”