Ahmedabad: It took Royal Challengers Bengaluru 18 years to win their first IPL title. Now, there are many examples of teams having a season where everything finally falls into place but are unable to repeat that success.
By successfully defending their IPL crown on Sunday, RCB have showed signs of starting a new era, like that of five-time champions CSK and MI. That they are a force to reckon with and have the right systems in place, the hallmark of a seasoned outfit.
RCB performed better than in 2025, dominating every opponent and putting on a superb show in the final in Ahmedabad against Gujarat Titans. The table-toppers outplayed GT twice within a week, showing different areas of strength in those wins. In Qualifier 1, it was RCB’s batting might that stood out, while bowlers shone in the final.
The team owes its success to the work done by their think tank, led by head coach Andy Flower and director of cricket, Mo Babat. For a long time, RCB assembled a star cast around Virat Kohli, but the pieces never clicked together. Flower and Bobat though overhauled the approach after 2024. The approach of banking on big names was shelved.
They started by appointing a rank outsider Rajat Patidar as captain in early 2025. Picking the untested, low-profile Madhya Pradesh batter seemed a random cal, but it has delivered stunning success. It took the focus away from the big names to the team goal. On Sunday, the soft-spoken Patidar cemented his legacy with RCB’s second win in a row.
He admits he is a man of few words, but Patidar says he is an instinctive leader who communicates with teammates on the field. A natural leader or not, the simple way to command respect in the dressing room is through performance.
Patidar has done that, playing jaw-dropping strokes during a series of impactful innings. In Qualifier 1, he hit a 33-ball 93* to power RCB into the final. He aggregated 501 runs (SR 192.69), his best since his IPL debut in 2021.
“As a captain, I’m not very expressive, but I’m aware of game situations. Of course, you need backing, and there was a lot of it from the management and players,” he said.
The RCB think tank said on Monday that a “deeper confidence” gained from the 2025 win
helped. “Last year there was a lot of pressure. (This year) I was calmer. The way we played we didn’t just play, but dominated.”
It all started with retaining the core that did well in 2025. “You can’t win the title in the auction, but you can lose it,” Bobat said during a virtual media interaction on Monday, explaining the importance of the right picks.
There is no substitute for experience. Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Josh Hazlewood, Kohli (top run scorer) and Krunal Pandya made a big difference, besides Patidar and opener Venkatesh Iyer, who delivered after coming in for Phil Salt.
Kohli continued to evolve. Of the six batters who scored 600 or more this IPL, only Vaibhav Sooryavanshi (RR) and Ishan Kishan (SRH) had a better strike rate than his 675 at an SR of 165.84. He struck his fastest IPL fifty (75* – 42b) and highest playoff score in the five-wicket final win. Devdutt Padikkal and Tim David added to RCB’s batting depth.
Top attack
When RCB coaches sought his views on the squad, Patidar stressed on a top-notch bowling attack. And that was central to their success. Bhuvneshwar (28 wkts) and Hazlewood (15) consistently provided the early breakthroughs. They out-bowled GT in the final, dismissing in-form openers Shubman Gill and Sai Sudharsan inside 3.4 overs. It was only the fourth time this season that Gill and Sudharsan, both with 700-plus runs, fell inside the Powerplay. Three of those early exits came against RCB.
Pacer Rasikh Salam quietly controlled play in the middle overs, his 19-wicket haul only behind Bhuvi’s 28. It included three wickets in the final.
Patidar credited Salam’s performance to sessions with bowling coach Omkar Salvi. “He spends lot of time with every bowler. You won’t see him in the meeting room, he spends time one-on-one with the bowlers.”
Krunal Pandya provided the balance in bowling (14 wkts) and batting. He delivered vital spells of spin, including the final (1/23). He also played a couple of match-winning innings.
“The (team) culture has changed…there have been many changes in the mindset of players. All credit to the coaching staff, the way they’ve been handling them, especially the new players who are also an important part of the team.”
Emotional win
After the stampede outside the M Chinnaswamy Stadium that marred the 2025 victory celebrations, it has been an emotional season for RCB. The players did not travel to Bengaluru after the final this time. Celebrations will have to wait. “You lost your fans after winning the game…not fans, family members,” Patidar said. “I want to dedicate this trophy to them. No words to express.”
