It was a surprise to see Venkatesh Iyer becoming one of the most expensive players in IPL 2025 Mega Auctions. He took home a pay of more than INR 20 Cr at the auctions. While the demand was not very surprising, seeing teams ready to spend almost 25% of their purse on him was a shock. Here, we take a look at the list of two franchises which targeted Venkatesh Iyer in IPL 2025 Auctions before KKR signed him.
1) Royal Challengers Bengaluru
RCB needed a left-handed Indian batter in the middle order. Venkatesh Iyer was the perfect option for the franchise. They did right in going after the Madhya Pradesh all-rounder.
However, at one point, with still some areas left, it was shocking to see RCB persist for the cricketer. Eventually, KKR was more desperate and hence signed Iyer.
2) Lucknow Super Giants also wanted Chahal for IPL 2025
LSG is one of the franchises which targeted Venkatesh Iyer in IPL 2025 Auctions before KKR signed him. LSG already had a lot of left-handers already in the team.
Therefore, it came as a complete surprise that they bid for him. They could have wanted him as an opener. However, once the bid went out of range, they stepped out of the race.
