Rajat Patidar walked into the Ahmedabad press room just after 1am, IPL trophy tucked under one arm, birthday cake smudges still on his shirt. The smile gave away what the words later confirmed: he had captained Royal Challengers Bengaluru to back-to-back titles and, on turning 33, could not have asked for a neater present.
“I’m feeling great… it’s a great feeling. it’s my birthday. There can’t be a better gift than this,” he said, patting the silverware. “The individual that I am, I always focus on living in the present. We have won back-to-back, we’ll celebrate but the focus will be how we can now do this three in a row. It can’t get better than this. When you win trophies, you don’t look at individual performances. Nothing is bigger than this.”
Key facts first
• RCB beat Lucknow by 24 runs to secure a second straight IPL crown.
• Patidar ended the season with 501 runs at a strike-rate of 192.69, the best return of his career.
• Rasikh Salam, 22, topped RCB’s wicket charts with 19 at 8.1 an over.
• The title was dedicated to supporters who died in last year’s stadium stampede.
Deeper into the story
A year ago RCB needed a late surge just to reach the play-offs. This time, they barely blinked. Patidar reckoned the group-stage dominance took the tension out of the run-in.
“Last year was a lot of pressure,” he said. “[This year] I was more calm. The way we played through the tournament, we didn’t just play but we dominated. I was confident if we played like this, we could win the second title for RCB.”
That calm did not mean detachment. Teammates speak of a skipper who rarely raises his voice yet always knows the match situation. Former India pacer Varun Aaron, working on television, summed it up in one crisp line: “What Patidar has done is amazing.”
Splitting the roles
One reason for the poise is the off-season work. Patidar, who still thinks of himself as a batter first, compartmentalised leadership and hitting.
“I took a lot of learnings as captain and batter,” he explained. “I look at how much time I give myself to bat, I spent a lot of time at the nets before the season… just me and the bowlers. There was a lot of communication with DK bhai, regarding my trigger movements and some technical adjustments. When I came to the IPL, I continued that and was able to execute. That gave a lot of clarity to me as a batter. As captain, I learnt a lot [from] Faf du Plessis, how he presents himself, how his body language is always confident. That has taught me a lot.”
Dinesh Karthik’s throw-downs and quiet nudges helped iron out a slightly closed stance. The result: more scoring options square of the wicket and, crucially, fewer dot balls at the start of an innings. For casual readers, a ‘dot ball’ is simply one from which no run is scored – in T20 cricket, they feel like gold dust to the bowler.
Changing room culture
Patidar was quick to pass credit around, starting with the backroom staff.
“The [team] culture has changed. I don’t know what it was before 2021. But from when I’ve come in, there have been a lot of changes in the mindset of players. All credit to the coaching staff, the way they’ve been handling the players. Especially the new players who are also an important part of the team. The coaching staff treats every player equally – that’s a big change”
Bowling coach Omkar Salvi received a special mention. While head coach Andy Flower and mentor AB de Villiers attract the headlines, Salvi has worked one-to-one with youngsters such as Salam, ironing out wrist position and length control.
Rasikh’s rise
Salam’s figures may not leap off the scorecard at first glance, yet his 19 wickets came in hard overs – the powerplay and the death. His bananas-in-swing at the top and well-disguised slower ball at the end gave Patidar flexibility. He was even trusted with the final over in two tight finishes; both times, he nailed it.
Perspective and remembrance
The celebrations were loud, though not unchecked. Twelve months ago, a stampede outside the Chinnaswamy Stadium left five supporters dead. Patidar insisted the victory is “for them and their families”, and a minute’s silence was held before the squad photo.
Where next?
An IPL three-peat has never been done. Patidar knows the talk will start tomorrow, but he seemed in no hurry to over-plan.
“As a captain, I’m not very expressive, but at the same time I’m aware of game situations. Of course you need backing, there was a lot of it from the management and players.”
The immediate schedule is simpler: a few days off in Indore with family, then a short camp ahead of India’s tour of Zimbabwe. Franchise cricket moves quickly, but for now, the birthday boy has earned a rare pause.
Brief analysis
• Tactically, RCB’s big shift was front-loading batting intent, accepting the odd collapse in exchange for a persistent 9+ run-rate.
• Bowling remained pace-heavy, yet Salvi’s tweaks added a layer of variation that covered for a thin spin bench.
• Leadership clarity – Patidar makes decisions; senior voices advise, not override – kept dressing-room noise low.
It is hardly a flawless machine, and the IPL’s auction churn will test that balance, but for the second June in a row the red shirts finished on the podium’s top step. That, as Patidar put it, is “nothing bigger than this.”
