Rajat Patidar was destined to lift the Indian Premier League (IPL) title. Coming into Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in 2021, Patidar couldn’t do much before being subsequently released. Unsold at the 2022 auction, Patidar was brought into the side as an injury replacement for Luvnith Sisodia.
Patidar’s century against Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the playoffs proved to be the turning point of his career. The Madhya Pradesh batter was retained ahead of 2023 season, but missed the due to Achilles Heel injury. With 395 runs from 13 innings in IPL 2024 and Faf du Plessis leaving the franchise, Patidar was named as the captain for 2025 season.
With former captain Virat Kohli behind him, Patidar was spot on in his leadership as RCB dominated throughout the IPL 2025 to finish in the top two after the league stage – first time after 2016.
Kohli didn’t forget to make a special mention for Patidar. In a video released by RCB on their social media handles, Kohli was spotted entering the dressing room with former teammate AB de Villiers by his side. Upon entering the dressing room, Kohli spotted Patidar, sitting quietly – possibly recalling his journey in the last few years.
“What a turnaround,” came words from Kohli’s mouth pointing at Patidar. “Injury replacement to IPL-winning captain, bloody hell, that’s a turnaround,” added Kohli.
Kohli also gave Patidar one of his bats which the RCB skipper accepted with a kiss on the willow.
RCB’s victory celebrations in Bengaluru
Following the win, Kohli was time and again mentioned he want to celebrate the trophy with the fans. With De Villiers and Chris Gayle by his side, Kohli urged the duo to join in the celebrations in Bengaluru.
“I hope these two are coming to Bengaluru tomorrow with us. It’s going to be something special,” he said. Kohli’s short message sent the fans into frenzy as minutes later host broadcaster Star Sports confirmed that they would be covering celebrations. A victory parade is on cards although the exact itinerary is yet to be announced.
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