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Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) Rajat Patidar unleashed carnage on Gujarat Titans (GT) bowlers with an unbeaten 33-ball 93 in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026 Qualifier 1 on May 26. After the 92-run win, RCB’s Director of Cricket, Mo Bobat, in a post-match press conference recalled when he had called Patidar a spin-basher during the previous season. Bobat says that maybe Patidar is trying to prove a point by attacking pacers, no matter the length they bowl.
"I think I called him a spin basher once and he got quite annoyed with me because I was implying it was only spin," Bobat said with a smile on his face. "I think he's probably trying to prove a point to me.
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"Whether he's facing pace or spin, off the front foot or the back foot, the ball hits the middle of his bat an awful lot. He's got really sound basics and a pretty fearless intent, which is great to see."
Patidar hit nine sixes and five fours in his knock. He batted with a stupendous strike rate of 281.82, only bettered by teammate Jitesh Sharma in the innings with a five-ball 15 cameo.
Bobat in awe of Patidar’s aggressive intent
Bobat called Patidar's knock special, pointing out at some of the ‘outrageous shots' he played with an aggressive intent, leading the team from the front.
"I'm sure he'll be really pleased about being able to stand up in a big Qualifier and a big game. That would be great for the collective confidence of the team. Any team that's got the captain playing well gets filled with even greater confidence.
"That was a pretty special knock. It's the sort of innings we're becoming accustomed to seeing from him now. Some outrageous shots, but with really aggressive intent. I think that's leading by example," he added.
Bobat hails ‘pretty simple’ Patidar
Bobat lavished praise on Patidar for his calm demeanour as a captain. He hopes that the middle-order batter continues to do so.
"He's a very calm individual. He keeps things pretty simple. Like I said in the press conference recently, he's somebody who wants to focus on doing his job when he gets on the field, and he's pretty relaxed with everything off the field," Bobat said.
"So he's very good at managing his own energy, which is serving him well right now because he's saving that energy for his batting, which is obviously going well, and also for when he needs to get his tactics right out in the middle. Long may that continue," he added.
Patidar only second to Kohli in RCB lineup
Patidar has played a few impactful knocks this season. From 13 innings, he has amassed 486 runs at an average of 44.18. His strike rate is 196.76. He is RCB's second-highest run-scorer in the season, only behind former captain Virat Kohli who has 600 runs.
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