Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and England all-rounder Moeen Ali revealed that the Bengaluru-based franchise was about to replace Virat Kohli as captain in 2019. Moeen revealed that Parthiv Patel was all but appointed as captain of the franchise during Gary Kirsten's tenure as head coach.
Moeen Ali represented RCB between 2019 and 2020 before moving to MS Dhoni-led Chennai Super Kings (CSK), where he spent most of his career. Kohli is RCB's longest-serving captain. He captained the team in a few matches from 2011, and he officially took over from Daniel Vettori as full-time captain in 2013. Kohli continued in the role until 2021, when he stepped down, citing workload management.
"Yes, I think he was. I'm quite sure he was," Moeen said when asked whether Parthiv Patel had been considered for the RCB captaincy.
"In the final year when Gary Kirsten was there-after the first year, I believe-Parthiv was in line to become captain. He had a brilliant cricketing brain," Moeen added.
"That was the talk at the time. I don't know what happened or why it didn't materialise, but I'm sure he was seriously considered for the role."
Kohli-led RCB reached the final in IPL 2016 after that, the batting maestro struggled to replicate that success in the following seasons. The team failed to reach the playoffs for three consecutive years, finishing last in both 2017 and 2019, and managing only a sixth-place finish in 2018.
However, the Kohli-led RCB again made a comeback in 2020, reaching the playoffs of the cash-rich league. Kohli resigned as captain in 2021, and the franchise handed over leading duties to Faf du Plessis. The team maintained a level of consistency in subsequent seasons. Their long wait for a maiden IPL title finally ended earlier this year under the leadership of Rajat Patidar.
RCB defeated Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the IPL 2025 final at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad to win the maiden title.