Rajat Patidar, IPL winning RCB captain, rides the crest of a great personal year

The tide has begun turning this year for Rajat Patidar, captain of the Royal Challengers Bangaluru, who stayed in the shadows of Virat Kohli even as the Play Bold Army ended their drought in IPL after 17 years on 3 June.

Now 32, the seasoned Madhya Pradesh batter now wants to make the most of the opportunity to be in national reckoning as the captain of India A for the first of three-match ODI series against visiting Australia A on 30 September.

“It’s a huge honour for me to captain the India A side for the series against Australia A. I feel this is a great opportunity for me and the team to show the level we are at and be in the reckoning for India call-up with resilient performance,” said Patidar, who has shown in the IPL that he has what it takes to stake a claim in the white ball scheme of things.

Patidar will, however, deputise for Tilak Varma in the second and third ODIs once the later joins the squad after the Asia Cup in Dubai. Harshit Rana, Abhishek Sharma and Arshdeep Singh — three other members of India’s squad for the continental event, will also be a part of the 15-member unit. The three-match series will kickstart at the Green Park Stadium in Kanpur while the second and the third games will be played on 3 and 5 October respectively.

Speaking to the RCB media, the stylish right-handed batter said: “In a way, this year has been very special for me personally, with my on-field abilities being recognised and equally rewarded. It began with the captaincy stint of the MP state team in first class cricket and RCB trusting me with the responsibility of captaining the side. Winning the trophy was only the icing on the cake and along the way, there has been tremendous learnings which will benefit me in the long run.’’

Reflecting on his own captaincy methods, Patidar said: “As captain of a team, it is about how we come together as a unit and are willing to take a bullet for each other. That’s the camaraderie and belief system we had in RCB this season where each one of us stepped up for each other and worked together towards success. It will be a similar approach that we would like to adapt as a team for the India A outing. I am excited and look forward to the new challenge.” 

The right-handed batter’s credentials both as a leader and performer shone this week as he guided Central Zone to the Duleep Trophy 2025 title with a six-wicket victory over South Zone in Bengaluru earlier this week. Patidar starred in the campaign with a dominating 101 off 115 balls in the final and finished as the tournament’s top-scorer with 382 runs in five innings, including two centuries and two half-centuries.