Royal Challengers Bengaluru name Patidar captain for IPL 2025, not Virat Kohli

RCB made the announcement in Bengaluru on Thursday at an event attended by team director Mo Bobat, head coach Andy Flower and Patidar. He has played three seasons for the franchise since joining them in 2021 and has grown into one of their key batters, having scored 799 runs in 28 matches at a strike rate of 158.85.

Patidar, 31, was one of three players RCB retained ahead of the mega auction in November. While this will be his first captaincy stint in the IPL, he captained his state team Madhya Pradesh in the 2024-25 seasons of the 20-over Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and the 50-over Vijay Hazare Trophy. Those tournaments were his first full-time assignments as captain in domestic cricket.

RCB have not won the IPL title yet, though they have been finalists three times, the last of which was in 2016. They have made the playoffs in four of the last five seasons, including in 2024, when they won their last six league matches to get into the top four but then lost the Eliminator.

With RCB appointing Patidar, Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Capitals are the only other teams yet to name their captains for the upcoming season. Shreyas Iyer, KKR’s captain last year, will lead Punjab Kings this year, while the former DC captain Rishabh Pant is now leading Lucknow Super Giants.