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 boy, he would like to play for his hometown franchise.

Manish Pandey has been in the Indian Premier League since its inception. The right-back was part of the Mumbai Indians squad in 2008 and after that, he moved to Royal Challengers Bengaluru in 2009 where he made an immediate impact on the team.

Pandey played for Royal Challengers Bengaluru for two years. The right-handed bowler made an immediate impact by scoring a huge number of points in the league against Deccan Chargers (now defunct). He became the first Indian batsman to hit a century in the Indian Premier League.

Pandey then moved to Pune Warriors India in 2011 before joining Kolkata Knight Riders in 2014 where he played a pivotal role in the title-winning side. He played a vital role in the final as he scored 94 in the final against KXIP and won the Man 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 been on a decline ever since. He also played for Lucknow Super Giants and Delhi Capitals before joining Kolkata Knight Riders.

Pandey, after playing for seven franchises, expressed his desire to play for Royal Challengers Bengaluru. He said that he, like all Karnataka players, would want to play for the franchise. Speaking to TV9, he explained:

“As a hometown boy, I would love to play for RCB again. Not just me, every youngster in Karnataka would love to play for RCB one day.”

Manish Pandey is currently a part of the Kolkata Knight Riders. He won the title with the team in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024. Although he did not play many matches, he played well in the few opportunities he got and helped the team register victories.

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 matches in the league and has scored 3850 runs at an economy rate of 30 and 121 respectively. He has also scored 22 half-centuries and has one century to his name in the tournament.

The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 is all set for a grand auction. There have been several reports that the Board of Control for Cricket in India will allow 6 retainers along with 3 RTM cards in the auction. So far, there has been no confirmation from the governing body but the official announcement is likely to be made soon.

It remains to be seen whether Manish Pandey will be retained by defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders ahead of IPL 2025 or not.