Andy Flower, jo Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) ke head coach hain, ne Rajat Patidar ki IPL 2025 mein captaincy ke liye badi waah-waahi ki. Unka kehna tha, “Bhai, tu uss shanti ko underestimate nahi kar sakta jo usne dikhaayi, itne bade-bade players aur ek bada franchise lead karte hue, aur pressure mein solid decisions lete hue.” Yeh baat unhone RCB ke Punjab Kings (PBKS) ke khilaaf IPL 2025 final mein chhe run se jeetne ke baad kahi. Patidar ne apne cool attitude aur leadership se sabko impress kiya, bhale hi uska captaincy ka experience kam tha.
Rajat Patidar ko IPL 2025 ke liye RCB ka captain banaya gaya, jo ek bada shock tha, kyunki team mein Virat Kohli jaisa bada naam aur Faf du Plessis jaise experienced log the. 31 saal ka Patidar, jiska international experience bas char match ka tha (ek ODI aur teen Tests), pehle kabhi IPL mein captaincy nahi kiya tha. Lekin RCB ke management, Andy Flower aur Mo Bobat, ne usme ek shant aur smart leader dekha. Patidar ne pehle Madhya Pradesh ko Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024 ke final mein lead kiya tha, jahaan usne 10 matches mein 428 runs maare, average 61.14 aur strike rate 186.08 ke saath. Yeh dikhaaya ki woh apne khel se team ko inspire kar sakta hai.
Flower ne baar-baar Patidar ki “shanti aur simplicity” ki taareef ki. RCB jaisa franchise, jiska fanbase bada passionate hai aur jo 16 saal tak trophy nahi jeeta tha, lead karna koi chhota kaam nahi. Team mein Kohli, Josh Hazlewood, Phil Salt, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, aur Krunal Pandya jaise bade players the, jinke apne egos aur expectations hote hain. Patidar, jo ek “shant banda” hai, apne simple aur polite style se sabka respect jeeta. Flower ne kaha ki IPL ke “hungama” mein, jahaan media aur fans ka pressure hota hai, Patidar ka cool rehna kamaal tha.
Patidar ne khud kaha, “Meri captaincy ka style thoda alag hai—main zyada shor nahi karta, shant rehta hoon, lekin situation ko samajhta hoon—kya chahiye, kya nahi—main zyada express nahi karta aur pressure mein ghabraata nahi, yeh meri taakat hai.” Is style se unhone RCB ke aggressive strategies banaye, jaise do slips ya short covers lagana, jo opponents ke liye surprise tha aur team ko jeet dilaya.
RCB ka valuation 2024 mein $117 million tha, aur fans ka pressure bhi ek alag level ka. 2024 season mein RCB ne pehle aath matches mein sirf ek jeeta tha, lekin Patidar ke 395 runs (strike rate 177 se upar) ne team ko playoffs tak le jaane mein madad ki. 2025 mein bhi unhone apna cool rakha aur team ko title tak pahunchaya.
Flower ne Patidar ke “pressure mein solid decisions” ko highlight kiya. RCB ke 2025 squad mein Liam Livingstone, Phil Salt, Hazlewood, aur Bhuvneshwar jaise naye players aaye, jinhone team ko balance diya. Patidar ne in experienced players ka fayda uthaya, jo Flower ke mutaabik “khud hi apni captaincy kar sakte the.” Isse Patidar ko badi strategy pe focus karne ka mauka mila.
Jaise Chennai Super Kings (CSK) ke khilaaf Chepauk mein 50 run se jeet, jahaan Patidar ne aggressive field placements kiye, woh dikhaata hai uska dimaag kitna tez chalta hai. Ambati Rayudu ne kaha ki Patidar ke aggressive intent ne CSK ko shock kiya, aur team ne ek saath 30-40 runs ke chhote contributions se jeet haasil ki, na ki kisi ek bade score se. Yeh team spirit Patidar ki leadership ka result tha.
Patidar ko ek finger injury bhi jhelni padi, lekin IPL 2025 ke suspension ke baad woh wapas aaye aur full form mein the. Flower ne kaha ki yeh break Patidar aur Phil Salt ke liye perfect tha, jisse woh playoffs mein full josh ke saath khele.
RCB ko lead karna, jaise Flower ne kaha, ek “tough kaam” tha. Itne bade players ke saath, Patidar ko team ko ek saath rakhna tha. Kohli, Hazlewood, Bhuvneshwar, aur Krunal jaise players ke experience ka fayda uthaate hue, Patidar ne apna alag mark chhoda. Flower ne bataya ki RCB ne auction mein aise players ko liya jo Patidar ko support kar sake, aur yeh strategy kaam aayi.
Kohli ne bhi Patidar ka saath diya, aur captaincy announcement ke waqt kaha, “Tu iske layak hai, tune yeh kamaaya hai.” Yeh support ne Patidar ke confidence ko boost kiya. Assistant coach Dinesh Karthik ne bhi, jo pehle RCB ke player the, apne Indian insight se team ko guide kiya. Flower ne Karthik ke positive vibe ki bhi taareef ki.
Patidar ka caring nature bhi unka plus point tha. Flower ne kaha, “Woh apne teammates ki fikar karta hai, dressing room mein sabka respect hai uske liye.” Is emotional intelligence aur batting mein “ziddi aur strong” attitude ne usko IPL ke ups and downs se nikalne mein madad ki.
RCB ne IPL 2025 ki shuruaat do bade away wins se ki—Kolkata Knight Riders aur CSK ke khilaaf. Patidar ki leadership ne team ka morale high rakha, chahe Indo-Pak tension ki wajah se IPL suspend hua ho ya KKR ke khilaaf match baarish mein dho gaya ho. Neutral venues jaise Lucknow mein “home” matches khelne ke bawajood, Patidar ne team ko adapt kiya.
Batting mein bhi Patidar ne 11 matches mein 239 runs banaye, aur pehle ke seasons mein bhi solid performances di—jaise 2022 Eliminator mein Lucknow Super Giants ke khilaaf century, jo IPL playoffs mein pehli uncapped player ki century thi. Flower ne kaha, “Ek leader ke liye zaroori hai ki woh apne actions se dikhaaye kaise khelna hai, aur Rajat yeh kar raha hai.”
X pe RCB ke official account aur fans ne Patidar ki taareef mein kaafi posts kiye. @RCBTweets ne Flower ke quote ko share kiya, “Rajat ke paas simplicity hai, woh apne aas-paas ke logon ki fikar karta hai, humne dekha kaise usne Madhya Pradesh ko lead kiya, humein yeh bahut pasand aaya.” Ek aur post mein Patidar ke birthday pe usko “Bold. Calm. Fearless!” kaha gaya, aur fans se support maanga gaya. Yeh sab dikhaata hai ki fans bhi Patidar ki leadership ke fan hain.
Andy Flower ka Rajat Patidar ke liye yeh tareef dikhaati hai ki yeh banda kitna kamaal ka leader hai—shant rehkar, pressure mein solid decisions lekar, aur bade players ko ek saath leke chalne mein. Patidar ka cool attitude, smart tactics, aur domestic cricket se aaya confidence ne RCB ko 2025 mein pehli baar IPL title dilaya. Ek solid management aur experienced players ke support ke saath, Patidar ek uncapped player se RCB ka title-winning captain ban gaya. Jaise Flower ne kaha, itne pressure ke bawajood Patidar ka “unchanged” rehna aur bade players ko lead karna usko ek alag level ka leader banata hai.
