Follow Us“From an injury replacement to an IPL winning captain, bloody he*l!”
Virat Kohli is saying these words to a visibly overwhelmed Rajat Patidar as he sat in the dressing room in a video released by Royal Challengers Bengaluru after they lifted their much-awaited first Indian Premier League trophy, defeating Punjab Kings by six runs in the final.
Such has been the trajectory of RCB skipper Patidar this season, and coach Andy Flower also acknowledged it by practically gushing out about the right-handed batter from Madhya Pradesh who led the team to a historic trophy, which was yearned for by millions of their fans.
Flower pointed out how Patidar handled himself and a team that was full of stars without changing his basic nature, and staying the same person he was before. The former Zimbabwe wicketkeeper batter also said that this has made him respect Patidar a lot more.
“One of the most impressive things about what Rajat has done this year is, as an inexperienced captain, that he hasn't been affected by it," Flower said.
"I don't think it has affected his batting because I've watched him really closely as a character, and he is still the lovely, gentle, polite Rajat Patidar that we knew last year. He hasn't changed at all in that regard.
“Captaining RCB is a really tricky job. If I cast my mind back to how poorly I captained when I was his age, I've got tremendous respect for how he's held himself with all that scrutiny and captained some big players.
“You can't underestimate the calmness he showed in leading some really big players, a really big franchise, making good decisions out there in the middle under the pressure that RCB players play under. So I've got tons of respect for him. I'm really proud of the way that he's carried himself, and he's been crucial to us doing well.”
Flower also praised his support staff, which included batting coach Dinesh Karthik, who was with the team as a player until the last season, and highlighted how well Karthik has transitioned from being a player to a mentor and coach.
“I think some of our assistant coaches, DK [Karthik], Malo [Malolan Rangarajan], Richard Halsall, and Omkar Salvi, they've been outstanding," Flower added.
“Having that Indian insight and knowledge in our coaching staff has been really important for this campaign this year. And DK, particularly, I think as a mentor and batting specialist, he's been brilliant. I've loved working with him, he's got great energy, he has got a smile on his face most of the time. I think he's really enjoyed his job this year. It's quite a transition to make from playing to coaching, and he's done it amazingly well.
“It's very obvious that he's had an impact, certainly on the batting group, but he's certainly had an impact within the leadership of the management group, and the coaching group, and with the wider team. So he's a really impressive guy, a brilliant guy to spend some time with, and I've loved every minute of it.”