Indian national cricket team batsman Manish Pandey has expressed his desire to play for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025. He said that as a hometown player, he would like to play for his hometown franchise.
Manish Pandey has been in the Indian Premier League since the league began. The right-hander was part of the Mumbai Indians squad in 2008 and then moved to Royal Challengers Bengaluru in 2009, where he made an immediate impact for the team.
Pandey played for Royal Challengers Bengaluru for two years. The right-handed bowler made an immediate impact, scoring a superb first-class century against the Deccan Chargers (now defunct). He became the first Indian batsman to score a hundred in the Indian Premier League.
Pandey moved to Pune Warriors India in 2011 and then joined Kolkata Knight Riders in 2014, where he played a key role in the team’s title triumph. He played a key role in the final against KXIP, scoring 94 runs and winning the Player of the Match award.
After that, Manish Pandey moved to Sunrisers Hyderabad in 2017 but has not been the same since then as his career has taken a downturn. He also played for Lucknow Super Giants and Delhi Capitals before joining Kolkata Knight Riders.
After playing for seven franchises, Pandey has expressed his desire to play for Royal Challengers Bengaluru. He said that like all Karnataka players, he would like to play for a franchise. In an interview with TV9, he explained:
“As a hometown boy, I would love to play for RCB again. Not just me, every youngster from Karnataka would love to play for RCB one day.”
Manish Pandey currently plays for Kolkata Knight Riders. He won the title with his team in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. He did not play many matches but played well in the limited opportunities and helped his team to a win.
Manish Pandey’s career over the years in the Indian Premier League (IPL)
Pandey is a veteran of the Indian Premier League. The right-handed bowler has played 171 games in the league and has scored 3850 runs at an average of 30 and 121 respectively. He has also scored 22 half-centuries and one century in the tournament.
The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 is all set to hold a massive auction. There have been various reports that the Board of Control for Cricket in India will allow six reserves along with three RTM cards in the auction. There has been no confirmation from the governing body so far, but an official announcement is likely to be made soon.
It is yet to be seen whether Manish Pandey will be retained by defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of IPL 2025.
