Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) mentor and batting coach Dinesh Kartik revealed that the team management selected Rajat Patidar as their captain for the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 because they decided to back Patidar, impressed by his leadership credentials.
RCB surprised everyone with their move of appointing Patidar as the new captain. The Madhya Pradesh batter who made his IPL debut in 2021 was retained by the franchise before IPL 2025 mega auction for 11 crore INR. The star batter becomes the eighth player to lead RCB in the cash-rich league.
“The way Rajat led Madhya Pradesh during the domestic season was fantastic,” Dinesh Karthik said. “A lot of players had great things to say about his leadership, and that played a huge role in our decision. Since this is a fresh cycle for the team, we wanted a new leader to take charge, and Rajat was the ideal choice” said Karthik on Cricbuzz’s Hey CB with DK show.
RCB who ended their campaign after losing the do-or-die clash against Rajasthan Royals (RR), will now start their campaign against defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the tournament's opener clash which will take place at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on March 22.
RCB IPL 2025 squad
Virat Kohli, Phil Salt, Rajat Patidar, Yash Dayal, Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma, Josh Hazlewood, Rasikh Dar, Suyash Sharma, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Swapnil Singh, Tim David, Romario Shepherd, Nuwan Thushara, Manoj Bhandage, Jacob Bethell, Devdutt Padikkal, Swastik Chhikara, Lungi Ngidi, Abhinandan Singh, Mohit Rathee.