Rajat Patidar, the captain of Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), led the team to its maiden Indian Premier League (IPL) title earlier this year. Many fans were surprised with his appointment as skipper ahead of the season, but he delivered and guided them to triumph.
Now, in an exclusive chat with Cricbuzz, RCB Director of Cricket Mo Bobat revealed how Virat Kohli, the veteran RCB batter, played a huge role in Patidar getting the captaincy.
“We spoke with Virat and we talked about the fact that Rajat was going to be new to captaincy. He was going to need all of our help. That’s the reality. And Virat said, ‘Look, 100%, I’m there to help. It’s in all of our interests if Rajat succeeds. Let’s give this a go.’ So, it’s brilliant to have Virat’s blessing and his approval because he’s an important person and player in our environment,” Bobat said.
“And it was brilliant this year watching Virat support him and be there for him. He empowered him. He let Rajat make his decisions, but he was also on hand with ideas and suggestions on and off,” he further added.
Patidar made his debut for RCB back in 2021, playing only four matches and scoring 71 runs. However, his career took off the next season when he was signed by RCB for INR 20 lakh to replace the injured Luvnith Sisodia mid-season. He went on to score 333 runs in eight matches that year. He followed it up with 395 runs in 15 games in 2024 and 312 runs in 15 games in 2025, respectively.
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