All aboard the Kiwi Express: How RCB acquired Jacob Duffy in the IPL 2026 mini auction
RCB brought in a serious pace reinforcement when they snapped up Jacob Duffy for his base price of INR 2 crore. However, getting the towering New Zealand fast bowler at his base price certainly looked like a steal, but the behind-the-scenes discussions were intense.
In RCB’s latest video of their auction planning, there were initially a few passionate discussions between Mo Bobat, RCB’s Director of Cricket and Dinesh Karthik, RCB’s batting coach and mentor.
One main point of discussion was whether to directly replace Josh Hazlewood if he wasn't available, or if RCB wanted two bowlers to share the workload, with one carrying the load and the other serving as a backup.
After much thought, Andy Flower chimed in and echoed Mo Bobat’s view of getting at least two bowlers who could share Josh Hazlewood's workload if he were unavailable. Then the discussion briefly turned to Matheesha Pathirana. One key reason thoughts didn't focus on the Lankan quick was that Nuwan Thushara was already on the team, and the two possess similar qualities.
Next, the discussion included RCB captain, Rajat Patidar. He weighed in on the Duffy factor. He claimed he had previously played against Duffy and noted that the outswinging factor to right-handers was something to watch out for. Flower added that Duffy’s height also adds to the arsenal he brings to the mix. Duffy's high delivery point can be a key factor to watch.
Flower then cemented the deliberation by highlighting Duffy’s flair with the new ball. He made it clear that the Kiwi Express is an attacking option who can bowl anywhere in the powerplay. Flower said, “He’s got pace, he’s got bounce, also he moves sideways.” Freddy Wilde corroborated Flower’s statistics and added that Duffy’s recent numbers have been enviable. In the end, RCB acquired Duffy to bolster their pace ranks.
