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Rajat Patidar with IPL title (Source: AFP)
Rajat Patidar has been a consistent batter in domestic cricket for a long time now and has played Test cricket and ODIs for India as well. In recent times, he has emerged as a quality leader too and earlier in 2025, he took RCB to their first-ever IPL title.
Rajat Patidar Continues To Grow As Leader
Interestingly, he is now the captain of Central Zone in Duleep Trophy 2025, and they have reached the final as well. To assert his dominance as a leader, the cricketer has smashed a century as well, and Central Zone is well on their way to lifting the trophy after cleaning up South Zone for 149.
In the IPL final, Rajat Patidar did not play a brief innings but did well to bring the momentum back in RCB's favour with some lusty blows. He hit 26 off 16 balls, and it helped his team get some crucial runs in the middle overs when it seemed that the Punjab Kings bowlers had things in control.
Rajat Patidar's Runs As Captain In Tournament Finals
| Tournament Name | Score In Final |
| SMAT 2024 | 81* (40) |
| IPL 2025 | 26 (16) |
| Duleep Trophy Final | 101 (115) |
Another tournament where Rajat Patidar was captain and his team reached the final was the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024. He was leading Madhya Pradesh at that time, and though his team lost the match, the cricketer displayed amazing fighting skills. The cricketer scored 81 off just 40 balls, which included 6 sixes and 6 fours, and it was the tournament that probably sealed Rajat Patidar's fate as the new RCB captain.
Also, Rajat Patidar has done pretty well in the tournaments where he has led his team to a final or a title. In IPL, his progress was hampered by injuries, but he has scored 369 runs in just four innings of the Duleep Trophy and had 428 runs at a strike-rate of 186.09 in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024.
