Rajat Patidar walked into the press conference room in Ahmedabad just after 1am on Monday holding the IPL trophy, and the smile on his face did most of the talking. For a captain who usually keeps his emotions tightly controlled, the brief glances at the silverware beside him were a clear signal of satisfaction after Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) lifted the title for a second straight year.
Birthday joy and the mindset behind back-to-back titles
The moment carried extra sweetness for Patidar because it marked his 33rd birthday. He described the experience as something he could hardly have asked for more.
“I’m feeling great… it’s a great feeling. It’s my birthday. There can’t be a better gift than this,” he said. “I’m the kind of person who focuses on living in the present. We’ve won back-to-back, we’ll celebrate, but the focus now is on how we can do this three in a row. When you win trophies, you don’t dwell on individual performances. Nothing is bigger than this.”
Comparing the two title journeys
When asked to draw a comparison between the two runs to the championship, Patidar suggested that the 2026 campaign carried a sense of inevitability due to RCB’s control during the group stage.
“Last year had a lot of pressure,” he explained. “This year I was more calm. The way we played through the tournament—we didn’t just play, we dominated. I was confident that if we continued like this, we could win the second title for RCB.”
He added that while he is not naturally outwardly expressive as a leader, he is very conscious of match conditions and how situations evolve.
“As a captain, I’m not very expressive, but I’m aware of game situations. Of course you need backing—there was a lot of it from the management and from the players.”
Batting, captaincy and the work behind the numbers
Patidar credited a deliberate approach to separating his responsibilities as a batter and as skipper. He said that the bulk of the preparation for his batting had been completed during the off-season with Dinesh Karthik, and that work translated strongly during the tournament.
- RCB captain Patidar finished the season with 501 runs.
- His strike rate was 192.69.
- Those numbers were his strongest single-season returns since his IPL debut in 2021.
He also detailed how he spent significant time refining his batting habits before the competition began, including extended net sessions focused on his own timing and work against bowlers.
“I took a lot of learnings as captain and as a batter,” he said. “I look at how much time I give myself to bat, and 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.”
Patidar said he carried that preparation into the league and was able to execute it with clarity.
“When I came to the IPL, I continued that and was able to execute. That gave me a lot of clarity as a batter. As captain, I learned a lot from Faf du Plessis—how he carries himself, how his body language is always confident. That has taught me a lot.”
Coaching influence and a respectful tribute after the celebrations
Patidar paid special attention to the impact of Omkar Salvi, the bowling coach, describing how the work of a coach who often stays out of the spotlight can still be decisive—particularly for younger players.
He singled out Rasikh Salam, who enjoyed a standout season, saying the development he saw in the group was tied closely to Salvi’s approach.
- Rasikh Salam took 19 wickets.
- That was the second-best wicket tally for RCB in the team’s ranks, behind Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
“I’ve seen Omkar Salvi sir from my first Ranji season [in 2015],” Patidar said. “He spends a lot of time one-on-one with every bowler. There is a lot of hard work that Salvi sir has done for the team. You won’t see him in the meeting room—he spends time one-on-one with the bowlers.”
He also expressed deep appreciation for Andy Flower, another coach he described as someone who prefers to divert attention toward the players rather than himself.
“I’ve played five seasons of the IPL and he is one of the best coaches,” Patidar said. “The way he handles players—not only those who play. For him, the players who aren’t playing, the first-timers, he spends a lot of time with each individual. I don’t have words to express, but he’s the best coach I’ve played under.”
Patidar added that the culture within the squad has shifted significantly since his arrival in 2021, and he credited the coaching setup for that change.
- He said he doesn’t know what the culture was before 2021.
- From the time he joined, he has noticed changes in the players’ mindset.
- He praised the coaching staff’s equal treatment of every player, including new entrants.
The only moment in the interaction that turned sombre came when Patidar reflected on a tragedy that followed RCB’s first championship last year. He referenced the stampede outside the Chinnaswamy Stadium during the celebrations, in which 11 fans lost their lives.
For most of the conversation, Patidar focused on the pursuit of titles, defending the crown, and aiming at a third championship. But in his own moment of triumph, he paused to remember those who were not there to celebrate.
“You feel bad obviously—you lost your fans after winning the game… not fans, family members. So I want to dedicate this trophy to them. No words to express,” he said.
