Defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have suffered a major blow ahead of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 as the franchise has confirmed that pace bowler Yash Dayal will be out of the entire tournament due to personal reasons. Yash Dayal was not seen in RCB’s training sessions and also in RCB’s poster which sparked rumors of his absence from IPL 2026. Now RCB’s Director of Cricket, Mo Bobbitt has cleared all doubts on his absence. “So, just to confirm that Yash will not be joining the squad. As you know, he’s going through a personal situation at the moment, and just to clarify, we’ve been very supportive of Yash to date and that’s reflected in the fact that when we had the opportunity to keep players or let them go, we kept him. We wanted to keep him, and he told the media that he’ll be on a short-term contract.” Press conference on Tuesday. “We are in regular communication with him. I spoke to him earlier today, but it has been decided that it is not in his best interest or the best interest of the franchise at this time. He has maintained our support, and he remains under contract, and we will continue to speak with him as he works through his personal situation,” he added.before that, TimesofIndia.com was reached. Several RCB officials were contacted for an update on Dayal, but they did not respond. It is learned that the BCCI Center of Excellence had approached the Uttar Pradesh Cricket Association (UPCA) last September to test the bowler, but officials could not get in touch with him.“There was a case against him, so he was not considered for selection. I remember there was a call from the CoE in September to check him, but we were not able to make any contact with Yash Dayal. He has also changed his number. Even his childhood coach doesn’t know about it,” a UPCA official told TimesofIndia.com.
Yash Dayal for RCB in IPL
Yash Dayal has played two seasons (2024, 2025) with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), taking 28 wickets in 29 matches. He was a key figure in RCB’s bowling attack, notably helping the team reach the playoffs in 2024 and their maiden IPL title in 2025. Dayal was the joint-highest wicket-taker for RCB in 2024 with 15 wickets. He made a name for himself as a death over bowler after hitting 5 sixes for Gujarat Titans in IPL 2023, RCB supported him and made him one of the most reliable for RCB. Dayal, who recently tied the knot with social media influencer Shweta Pandir in a primate ceremony, has been at the center of major controversies of late. He was denied anticipatory bail a few months ago when he was involved in a case where he allegedly molested a minor. The controversy started in July 2025 when a case was registered against him for allegedly exploiting a woman under the guise of marriage. Later, a new case under the POSCO Act came up in Jaipur.
