Rajat Patidar Reflects on RCB Stint Before India A Captaincy

Earlier this year, Rajat Patidar led Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to their first Indian Premier League (IPL) championship. He feels the experience helped him develop as a leader. As he leads India A in the first game of the three-match, one-day series against Australia A, which starts on September 30, the star batter now hopes to apply those lessons.

“Captaining the India “A” team for the series against Australia “A” is a great honour for me. Rajat Patidar stated, “I think this is a fantastic chance for me and the team to demonstrate our level and be considered for an India call-up with strong performance.”

For me personally, this year has been particularly memorable since my on-field skills have been acknowledged and fairly compensated. It started when the RCB trusted me to lead the illustrious MP State squad during my time as captain of the first-class cricket team. Being awarded the trophy was just the cherry on top; I learnt a lot along the process that will help me in the future.

The way we unite as a team and are prepared to take a bullet for one another is what it means to be a team captain. We all supported one another and collaborated to achieve success during this season at RCB because of our strong sense of camaraderie and shared values.

As a team, we would like to use a similar strategy for the India “A” expedition. Rajat Patidar declared, “I am thrilled and eager for the new challenge.”

This week, the 32-year-old led Central Zone to the Duleep Trophy 2025 title with a six-wicket victory over South Zone in Bengaluru, showcasing his leadership and performance abilities. Rajat Patidar finished as the tournament’s leading scorer with 382 runs in five innings, including two hundreds and two half-centuries, and capped the campaign with an incredible 101 off 115 balls in the final.