CricPage Editorial
Rajat Patidar shaking hands with Subman Gill before the match in New Chadigarh ©BCCI-X
Rajat Patidar shaking hands with Subman Gill before the match in New Chadigarh ©BCCI-X
Rajat Patidar IPL 2026 is a story cricket fans will talk about for years. The RCB captain entered this season carrying the weight of a title defence, the shadow of Virat Kohli, and the noise of critics who had already written him off as a ₹11 crore mistake.
He answered every single one of them.
On May 26, 2026, at HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala, Patidar walked in at a tricky moment in Qualifier 1 against Gujarat Titans and produced one of the greatest innings in IPL playoff history. He scored 93 not out off just 33 balls at a strike rate of 281.81 — the highest ever by a captain in a fifty-plus score in IPL history. RCB posted 254/5. GT were bowled out for 162. RCB won by 92 runs and booked a direct ticket to the IPL 2026 Final on May 31 in Ahmedabad.
📖 Related Topics: RCB IPL 2026 journey · IPL 2026 playoffs
“From doubt to Dharamsala. From being written off to reaching the Final, Rajat Patidar answered the noise with 93 unbeaten runs from 33 balls.”
| Stat | IPL | Test | ODI |
|---|---|---|---|
| Matches | 56 | 3 | 1 |
| Innings | 51 | 6 | 1 |
| Runs | 1,597 | 63 | 22 |
| Highest Score | 112* | 32 | 22 |
| Average | 33.98 | 10.5 | 22.0 |
| Strike Rate | 165.15 | 38.42 | 137.50 |
| 50s | 14 | 0 | 0 |
| 100s | 1 | 0 | 0 |
| Fours | 105 | 9 | 3 |
| Sixes | 109 | 0 | 1 |
| Not Outs | 4 | 0 | 0 |
What these numbers tell you: 56 IPL matches, 1,597 runs, a strike rate of 165.15, 109 sixes, 14 fifties and one century—the 112* scored in the 2022 IPL Eliminator.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru dominated Gujarat Titans to book their place in the IPL 2026 Final.
RCB 254/5
vs
GT 162 (19.3)
RCB won by 92 runs
Patidar’s unbeaten 93 was the centrepiece of RCB’s 254/5. Gujarat Titans were dismissed for 162 in 19.3 overs, giving RCB a 92-run win and direct qualification for the Final.
In IPL 2025, during a rough patch, Patidar managed 11 off 15 balls against CSK. Fans on social media called him a fraud. They said RCB had wasted ₹11 crore. The criticism was loud, personal, and relentless.
Fast forward to May 22, 2026. RCB versus SRH. Patidar scored 56 off 39 balls and, in that innings, brought up his 100th IPL six. He became the fastest Indian batter ever to reach that landmark — in just 933 deliveries, beating Shivam Dube’s previous record of 992 balls. The same man fans called a fraud had just broken an IPL record. The noise never stopped him.
To understand Rajat Patidar IPL 2026, you must go back to 2022. In the IPL Eliminator against Lucknow Super Giants, Patidar scored 112 not out off 54 balls. He was uncapped at the time. No uncapped player had ever scored a century in the IPL playoffs before him. He reached his hundred in just 49 balls.
That innings told the world something important: this player does not shrink under pressure. He expands. Four years later, in Dharamsala, he proved it again — this time as captain, on the biggest stage, with a knock that was arguably even better.
Patidar’s 93 not out off 33 balls in Qualifier 1 was not just a great innings. It was a statistical earthquake. Here are the numbers:
The innings was not just about Patidar’s bat. It was about what his presence did to the entire RCB innings. RCB scored 114 runs in the last six overs of their innings in Qualifier 1 — the second-most by any team in an IPL innings ever. The record is held by RCB themselves, from 2016.
That finishing power happened because Patidar was still at the crease. He scored 72 of those 114 runs. He turned a competitive total into an impossible target. GT never had a chance.
One of the quiet achievements of Patidar’s captaincy in IPL 2026 has been leading alongside Virat Kohli without being overshadowed by him. Kohli broke the record for most IPL appearances this season. He crossed 9,000 IPL runs. Every Kohli milestone drew massive attention.
But when Patidar walked out to bat on May 26 in Dharamsala, it was his night. Kohli watched from the other end as his captain produced something neither of them will ever forget. That balance — Kohli the legend, Patidar the leader — has defined RCB’s IPL 2026 season from start to finish.
| Year | Match | Score | Result |
|---|---|---|---|
| 2022 | Eliminator vs LSG | 112* off 54 | RCB won |
| 2025 | Qualifier 1 vs PBKS | Captain — RCB won | RCB to Final |
| 2025 | Final vs PBKS | Captain — RCB won | IPL Champions 🏆 |
| 2026 | Qualifier 1 vs GT | 93* off 33 (SR: 281.81) | RCB to Final ✅ |
Patidar has played in 4 IPL playoff matches. RCB have won all 4. He has never lost an IPL knockout game. That is not a coincidence.
Rajat Patidar scored 93 not out off 33 balls at a strike rate of 281.81 against Gujarat Titans in Qualifier 1 at Dharamsala on May 26, 2026. It is the highest strike rate ever by a captain in a fifty-plus score in IPL history.
Rajat Patidar has scored 1,597 runs in 56 IPL matches at an average of 33.98 and a strike rate of 165.15, with 14 fifties and 1 century across his career.
Rajat Patidar was appointed RCB captain in November 2024, ahead of IPL 2025. RCB retained him for ₹11 crore at the IPL 2025 mega auction — one of only three players the franchise retained. The decision was driven by three clear reasons. First, Patidar had scored 395 runs at a strike rate of 177.13 in IPL 2024, making him RCB’s most impactful middle-order batter. Second, with Faf du Plessis released and Virat Kohli having stepped down from captaincy years earlier, RCB needed a fresh leader who could bat freely without the burden of past captaincy baggage. Third, Patidar had already shown his big-match temperament with his 112 not out off 54 balls in the 2022 IPL Eliminator — the first uncapped player ever to score a century in IPL playoffs. He justified every bit of that faith by leading RCB to their maiden IPL title in 2025 and is now captaining them again in IPL 2026 with a direct berth in the Final already secured.
Rajat Patidar’s highest IPL score is 112 not out off 54 balls, scored against Lucknow Super Giants in the 2022 IPL Eliminator. He was the first uncapped player to score a century in the IPL playoffs.
Patidar became the fastest Indian batter to score 100 IPL sixes, reaching the landmark in just 933 deliveries during the SRH vs RCB match on May 22, 2026 — beating Shivam Dube’s previous record of 992 balls.
Yes. Rajat Patidar will captain RCB in the IPL 2026 Final on May 31, 2026 at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad against the winner of Qualifier 2 on May 29 in New Chandigarh.
Rajat Patidar in IPL 2026 has delivered the definitive answer to every critic, every doubter, and every social media comment that called him out. He has led RCB through a 14-match league stage, defended their title with calm authority, and then produced the single most explosive innings in IPL playoff history when his team needed it most. He goes into the IPL 2026 Final on May 31 in Ahmedabad as a captain with a 100% playoff win record — something no other active IPL captain can claim. The winner of Qualifier 2 on May 29 in New Chandigarh — either Gujarat Titans or the SRH vs RR Eliminator winner — will face a man who has never lost when it matters.
AB Ankit is Editor-in-Chief of CricPage.
The season narrative and quick facts.
IPL, Test and ODI career table.
RCB 254/5, GT 162 and the 92-run result.
Captaincy, criticism and knockout record.
Four listed playoff matches and results.
Six answers retained from the old post.
The article’s closing assessment.
How Bengaluru reached the Final.
The playoff bracket and route to the Final.
CricPage’s international-centuries feature.
The official IPL player page linked in the article.
93 not out from 33 balls.
281.81 in the Dharamsala innings.
1,597 IPL runs in the retained table.
109 IPL sixes in the retained table.
Four listed matches, four RCB wins.