Rajat Patidar has surprised everyone by making a heartfelt revelation about his captaincy journey at Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) ahead of the upcoming Indian Premier League (IPL) 2026. RCB will defend their title against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on March 28 in Bengaluru.
Rajat Patidar was made the captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore in place of Faf du Plessis after the 2024 mega auction last year. In his first season as captain, the Madhya Pradesh batsman ended RCB’s 18-year title drought by defeating Punjab Kings in the 2025 final.
Jitesh Sharma played the biggest role under the leadership of Rajat Patidar!!
Ahead of the start of the season, Patidar has revealed that the player who helped him the most during his captaincy journey was not Virat Kohli but Jitesh Sharma. This shocking revelation has shocked everyone, especially because many believe that Kohli has played the biggest advisory role.
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The RCB captain said that Jitesh Sharma’s wicketkeeping approach has been his secret weapon. Patidar said there is a strong group of leaders like Virat Kohli, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Phil Salt, but he leaned the most on Jitesh because of his clarity and quick decisions on the field.
“There was not just one player. There were many experienced players. There is a group of leaders in this team. I was trying to take inputs from everyone, especially Jitesh Sharma. He used to keep wickets,” Rajat Patidar said on Cricbuzz.
He had a clear picture of where to bowl. I took more input from some than others. Virat was also there. There were many experienced players. Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Phil Salt. It was a group of leaders who helped me a lot.”
Rajat Patidar avoids forced changes
He also shared that he never tries to force changes to look different every season. However, the captain admitted that he reviews his mistakes with the coaches and follows his natural instincts.
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“I never think that I want to do something new. I want to do something different from last year. If I feel that I want to improve on my mistakes, I talk to my coaches in detail about it. But I don’t think I need to change anything. I never change my tendencies,” Patidar said.
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Rajat Patidar reveals all watch now!@RCBTweets #rcb pic.twitter.com/cFWecuq8k1
– Cricbuzz (@cricbuzz) 26 March 2026
Aryaman Vikram Birla and Rajat Patidar reunite in RCB
Meanwhile, IPL has brought a wonderful reunion. Years ago, Aryaman Vikram Birla and Rajat Patidar were just teammates in the Madhya Pradesh dressing room, and they even opened the batting together in domestic cricket. Aryaman even played with Venkatesh Iyer.
Now, fate has brought them together again, but in roles that no one could have imagined. Aryaman Birla is now the chairman of Royal Challengers Bangalore, taking charge after a consortium led by Aditya Birla Group bought the franchise in a record-breaking deal.
At the same time, Patidar is now the captain of RCB. From Ranji teammates to the chairman and captain of one of the biggest IPL franchises, this reunion is a perfect fairytale.
