After the fourth ball of the 17th over bowled by Kagiso Rabada, Virat Kohli held his extended lower jaw in pure amazement. He could scarcely believe that a length ball delivered by the Gujarat Titans pacer had been deposited into the stands at extra cover.
You wouldn’t get a more glowing review of that shot than this gobsmacked expression from a bona fide cricket legend. The architect of that piece of brilliance was Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) skipper Rajat Patidar.
The 32-year-old scored an unbeaten 93 to out-bat the opposition in the crucial Qualifier 1 to take his side closer to the prospect of a repeat Indian Premier League (IPL) title. Patidar found himself at the crease upon the fall of Kohli’s wicket. He was yet to face a ball when Devdutt Padikkal fell.
The situation demanded a rebuild to arrest the slide. Yet, when he finished playing his 33rd and last ball of the innings, the skipper had played out just a solitary dot ball.
“When we lost those couple of wickets, after a good start from the top three, it meant that we had a little bit of time just to do a little mini rebuild and then go again. Rajat recognizing those moments and deciding when to go up the gears, that’s what I have enjoyed seeing. That takes a real level of discipline and sophistication to your thinking and your planning,” said RCB’s director of cricket, Mo Bobat.
“I remember a game earlier in the season against the Rajasthan Royals where we lost early wickets, and he did a really good job of absorbing pressure to begin with before trying to put pressure on the opposition. This has been a really impressive part of his development,” he added.
Patidar spent a good five minutes of the pre-match press conference trying to convince reporters that he was not a nominated spin hitter. Bobat had done him no favor either, calling him a ‘spin basher’ during an interaction early on in the season.
Spin had little to no role to play in the HPCA Stadium in Dharamshala. It was against the formidable GT pacers that Patidar unleashed his onslaught at the back end of the innings, which propelled the total from 220 to the eventual 254 for five.
Rajat Patidar on his way to an unbeaten 93 to out-bat the opposition in the crucial Qualifier 1, taking his side closer to the prospect of a repeat Indian Premier League (IPL) title. | Photo Credit: Shashi Shekhar Kashyap
Rajat Patidar on his way to an unbeaten 93 to out-bat the opposition in the crucial Qualifier 1, taking his side closer to the prospect of a repeat Indian Premier League (IPL) title. | Photo Credit: Shashi Shekhar Kashyap
“I think he got quite annoyed with me for calling him a spin basher. I think he’s probably trying to prove a point to me,” a smiling Bobat said.
“One of the things about Rajat is (that) he tends to middle the ball quite often. Whether he’s facing pace bowling, spin bowling, off the front or back foot, the ball hits the middle of his bat quite a lot. He’s got some really good and sound basics and a pretty fearless intent, which is great to see,” he added.
Patidar made himself a permanent fixture in the RCB line-up with a stunning hundred in the IPL 2022 Eliminator.
Four years down the line, he has once again played a huge part in a Playoff victory for his side. He is turning himself into a big game player for the defending champion, and Bobat says nothing is better for the collective confidence of the team than its captain standing up and delivering in a big game.
Published on May 27, 2026
