With deadline of IPL retentions only a few hours to go on November 26, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and other teams got the news that Mumbai Indians (MI) were releasing Cameron Green from the squad. He was bought by MI for a staggering price of Rs 17.50 crore. MI wanted Hardik in but did not have the purse to make the trade happen. So, they decided to let Green go. The trade deal between MI and Gujarat Titans (GT) was reportedly signed right after the retentions were closed. The trade of players can still happen till December 12. 

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On the next morning, November 27, MI announced the return of Hardik and release of Green. RCB also informed its fanbase that they had acquired Green from MI. 

While MI had been thinking of Pandya for a long time. RCB had to make a last-minute decision on the retention day to get Green. It required a quick meeting between RCB head coach Andy Flower, team director Mo Bobat and others to make that call. 

Head Coach Andy Flower and Director of Cricket Mo Bobat explain the factors that influence the retention and release of players.

Valuable inputs from senior players, a purse that allows competitive advantage at the auction, and having as many options as possible, were some of_ pic.twitter.com/qhAd5sJ99f
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) November 26, 2023

Speaking on RCB Bold Diaries, Bobat said that the team is looking to add muscle power to the middle order with an already solid top-order. The RCB management said that on retention day, they had a quiet afternoon as they had already finalised their plans of who to release and who to keep. But as soon as Green was available, they sat to discuss his inclusion. Green fitted in perfectly in the RCB plan’s to strengthen the middle order.

“He’s the ideal fit for us in that middle-order power role,” Bobat said on RCB Bold Diaries. “He’s a high-quality, skillful and powerful batsman. He’s got the game against both pace and spin. He’s got international experience across formats and I’m sure he will enjoy batting at the Chinnaswamy. So, seeing him do that will be really exciting. He’s also a fantastic bowler and he bowls with pace and bounce, which were certainly attributes we were looking for particularly in our home conditions. Let’s not forget what an exceptional fielder he is. Some of the catches he has taken in recent times fielding at gully is seriously impressive.”

They key point of discussion in the RCB’s management meeting was to whether to trade in Green or to hope that no one picks him now and he is released and then buy him at the auction. They came to a conclusion and traded in Green.

“Essentially, we were trying to weigh up whether we take the risk of someone else picking up Cameron Green now, which could have happened before the deadline…hoping he makes it to the auction as a released player, but somebody else could’ve picked him up, which was obviously the case. Even then if you get to the auction, there’s no guarantee that you get him at the auction because you can easily be outbid,” said Bobat.

Flower said that Green’s trade was kind of a mini-project for the RCB’s masterplanners. The management discussed how important it was to be have a solid group of all-rounders and then also have the right balance of the overseas and Indian players in the side. After checking the rosters and the availability of the players, they decided on Green.