India, Dec. 21 -- The Indian Premier League (IPL) mini-auction saw three-time champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) lose out on Venkatesh Iyer, as the left-handed batter was acquired by defending champions Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) for INR 7 crore. The all-rounder who was picked by KKR for INR 23.75 crore before the 2025 season had a terrible outing in the last edition of the tournament, failing to score runs and living up to the high billing. This was the primary reason behind the franchise deciding to let him go ahead of the retention deadline.

However, KKR raised their paddle in the auction as it tried to buy back Venkatesh. The management attempted to acquire him by raising the bid to INR 6.8 crore; however, INR 7 crore was c...