- By Himanshu Badola
- Thu, 13 Feb 2025 07:57 AM (IST)
- Source:JND
In an interesting turn of events, Virat Kohli looks unlikely to take up the captaincy of Royal Challengers Bengaluru for the second time in his IPL career.
Star young batter Rajat Patidar has emerged as the front-runner to become the new RCB captain as the franchise is set to make the announcement on Thursday ahead of the IPL 2025.
Kohli was the RCB captain between 2013 and 2021 before stepping down as Faf du Plessis took over.
But RCB released Du Plessis, who was their skipper from 2022 to 2024, ahead of last year's mega auction. The 40-year-old Du Plessis will play for Delhi Capitals this season.
Kohli has a fine record as RCB captain, though he could not land them the title. The star batter led the side in 143 matches, the second-longest stint as captain after the legendary Mahendra Singh Dhoni for Chennai Super Kings.
Kohli has 68 wins, 70 losses and four no-results to show as RCB skipper.
His major achievement as RCB skipper came in 2016 when he produced a memorable performance with the bat throughout the season and led them to the final where they suffered a defeat against Sunrisers Hyderabad. Virat bagged the Orange Cap season, having smashed 973 runs, to date the highest for a batter in a single IPL season.
In IPL 2024, Kohli looked in marvellous touch with the bat and was the top run-getter with 741 runs at a strike rate of 154. RCB made it to the playoffs last season but lost the Eliminator clash against Rajasthan Royals.
On the other hand, Patidar was among RCB's retained players ahead of the auction and has the experience of leading Madhya Pradesh in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy and Vijay Hazare Trophy. The 31-year-old Patidar had guided Madhya Pradesh to the SMAT final where they lost to Mumbai by five wickets.
He was also the second-highest run-getter, behind Ajinkya Rahane, with 428 from 10 matches at an average of 61 and at a strike-rate of 186.08.
