India, Nov. 19 -- Things are changing in the RCB management, and it is clear from the way they have approached the IPL 2026 retention deadline. The Royal Challengers Bengaluru have just done the most un-RCB thing imaginable after finally winning their first title - they have refused to tear anything up.

While some franchises have treated the IPL 2026 retention window like a clearance sale, RCB have treated it like a trophy cabinet: sealed, polished, and largely untouched. Seventeen players from their championship run stay, eight are released, and the champions walk into the mini-auction with INR 16.4 cr to play with. The question now is simple: is this loyalty a piece of cool strategy, or an emotional hangover from 2025?

To decode it, w...