"Virat Kohli was an option.." RCB Director of Cricket Mo Bobat reveals why they appointed Rajat Patidar as captain

Rajat Patidar has played 27 games for RCB in the IPL.

On Thursday, February 13, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) announced Rajat Patidar as their captain for the 2025 Indian Premier League (IPL) season.

Rajat Patidar will take over as captain of the franchise after it decided to release Faf du Plessis ahead of the IPL 2025 mega auction. Patidar, who joined RCB in IPL 2021, has so far scored 799 runs in 27 games at a strike rate of 159.

RCB’s announcement comes after months of speculation, during which several names including Virat Kohli and Krunal Pandya were thrown for the role.

Following Patidar’s appointment as the captain, RCB’s Director of Cricket, Mo Bobat, has now shared the reason behind the decision.

RCB Director of Cricket Mo Bobat reveals why they appointed Rajat Patidar as captain

Speaking to the media after announcing Rajat Patidar as RCB’s captain for the upcoming season, Director of Cricket Mo Bobat stated that Virat Kohli’s name was considered, but he also added that Kohli doesn’t need a title to lead the team.

Mo Bobat said, “Of course, Virat was an option,” Bobat said. “That goes without saying, and I know that the fans would have probably leaned towards Virat in the first instance, but we have seen a lot of love for Rajat too… Virat doesn’t need a captaincy title to lead.“

He added that leadership comes naturally to Kohli and stressed that the senior Indian cricketer also supported Faf du Plessis in the captaincy role in previous seasons.

He added, “I think leadership, as we’ve all seen, is one of his strongest instincts. I think it just comes naturally to him. He leads regardless. For us, even last year with Faf as captain, we saw every bit of that.“

“He leads as an example with the bat. The volume of runs, and the strike rate that he scored last year was so impressive and so important for us.“

Having added big names like Josh Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Phil Salt to their side, RCB will aim to secure their maiden IPL title in the upcoming season.

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