Rajat Patidar labels RCB’s collective brilliance as ‘positive’ sign for IPL 2026
The Royal Challengers Bengaluru stamped their authority over Sunrisers Hyderabad with an emphatic win in the IPL 2026 season opener. They secured the win by a staggering six wickets with four overs to spare. Rajat Patidar, the RCB captain walked in and started belting out the shots for fun. His tempestuous innings of 31 from just 11 balls stretched out the sheer dominance knitted by Devdutt Padikkal.
Talking at the post-match presentation, Rajat opened up about how the collective brilliance helped RCB shape this massive win. He also heaped significant praise on the Kiwi Express, Jacob Duffy who claimed a three-fer to win the Player of the Match award.
Shedding light on the overall win, Patidar said, “The way boys played and everybody chipped in was a positive sign. First of all, it was the season opener for us, and the way everybody chipped in and did it for the team, I think that was a very positive sign for us.”
Highlighting Duffy’s brilliant spell in the powerplay, Patidar added, “The way Duffy played his first match and the way he bowled, I think that was really impressive. The way he took the wickets of Head and Abhishek, I think that was the turning point for us.”
Underlining RCB’s aggressive batting stance, Patidar said, “Not a policy, but we are assessing the wicket. The wicket was good to bat on. The way Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal played their innings, I think that laid a solid base for the other batsmen. So we’ll just keep continuing to do that. I think there are no words for him.”
Patidar’s admiration for Virat Kohli’s incredible knock was simply more palpable as he said, “Every time he (Kohli) goes in, especially when the team is chasing, he delivers as the number one batter. The way he played and stayed till the end was outstanding.”
He concluded by talking about Phil Salt’s electric take of Ishan Kishan, adding, “It was a terrific catch by Phil Salt. Even I was surprised! But as you know, he’s a very good fielder. I’ve seen him take many catches in the air, so that was a brilliant effort.”
