The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) will be aiming to win their maiden title in the upcoming season of the Indian Premier League (IPL). RCB were looking like a great side after the IPL 2024 auction but couldn’t make it into the final and finished in the fourth position on the points table. It looks like they were dependent on 3-4 players who were the consistent performers for RCB in IPL 2024.
RCB had so many ups and downs in IPL 2024 and were one of the contenders to secure the title after entering the playoffs. However, they lost the Eliminator match against Rajasthan Royals and missed another chance to get their hands on the IPL trophy. The main reason for RCB’s failure was the over-dependency on key players of the team. Virat Kohli, Faf du Plessis, and Glenn Maxwell were the main pillars of RCB’s batting lineup, while Mohammed Siraj was the spearhead of the bowling and was a consistent performer for the team throughout the tournament. Apart from that, none of the players could make any big impact in the tournament.
It was apparent that RCB would release a bunch of players ahead of the IPL 2025 auction and build a new squad for the upcoming season that could make them win their maiden title. As per the latest squad of RCB, former RCB Captain Faf du Plessis will not be featured with this franchise in 2025. Having released him, RCB have signed the deal with probable impactful players such as Phil Salt, Liam Livingstone, Rasikh Dar, Josh Hazlewood, and Jitesh Sharma and are going to come up with different plans and strategies this time with match-winners who can clutch in pressure situations.
Who will be the captain of RCB in IPL 2025?
Talking about the captaincy, Rajat Patidar is the next skipper of RCB for the next edition of IPL, continuing his stint with this franchise since 2021. His remarkable performance in domestic level of cricket and acclaimed leadership skills earned him the role of a captain for RCB. He captained Madhya Pradesh in Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024 final match. Patidar’s individual performance in domestic cricket was also a talk of the town, as he amassed 428 runs in this recent domestic contest. With his calm nature, he is the right pick for leading in pressure situations, having a long association with RCB. He has collected 799 runs out of 27 IPL matches with one century and seven fifties.
Notably, Virat Kohli led the side in IPL 2023 due to the commencement of the impact player rule in that season. Looking into this, we can also see Kohli taking charge as the captain again in a few matches in IPL 2025. Let’s dive deeper into the records of previous captains who led RCB from 2008.
RCB Captains in IPL From 2008 to 2025
Former Indian Captain Rahul Dravid was the first skipper of RCB. The team finished in 7th place in the inaugural season in 2008. Anil Kumble led the IPL team to the final of IPL 2009. Under the captaincy of Anil Kumble, Daniel Vettori, and Virat Kohli. RCB stayed runner-up in three seasons, including IPL 2009, IPL 2011, and IPL 2016, respectively.
Rajat Patidar is handed over the captaincy in 2025, relacing Faf du Plessis, who came on the radar after the former skipper Virat Kohli stepped down from the role ahead of that season. Du Plessis had a great outing in his debut season for RCB as captain in 2022, as he led the team to the playoffs in that season. In 2024, Du Plessis also led from the front, as he scored 438 runs in 15 matches at an average of 29.20. He couldn’t lead RCB towards glory. Just before IPL 2025, RCB did not retain Faf du Plessis, who has been with RCB for three seasons. Here, you can check the year-on-year captaincy records of players who have led RCB.
| Player | Span | Matches | Won | Lost | Tied | Draw | NR | W/L | %W | %L |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Rahul Dravid | 2008-2008 | 14 | 4 | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.4 | 28.57 | 71.42 |
| Kevin Pietersen | 2009-2009 | 6 | 2 | 4 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 | 33.33 | 66.66 |
| Anil Kumble | 2009-2010 | 35 | 19 | 16 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.18 | 54.28 | 45.71 |
| Daniel Vettori | 2011-2012 | 28 | 15 | 13 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1.15 | 53.57 | 46.42 |
| Virat Kohli | 2011-2023 | 143 | 66 | 70 | 3 | 0 | 4 | 0.94 | 46.15 | 48.95 |
| Shane Watson | 2017 | 3 | 1 | 2 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 0.5 | 33.33 | 66.66 |
| Faf du Plessis | 2022-2024 | 42 | 21 | 21 | 0 | 0 | 0 | 1 | 50.00 | 50.00 |
| RM Patidar | 2025- | 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 0 | – | 66.67% | 33.33% |
Rajat Patidar Captaincy Records in IPL
| Matches | Won | Lost | Draw | Tied | Win % | Loss % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 9 | 6 | 3 | 0 | 0 | 66.67% | 33.33% |
RCB Squad 2025
| No. | Player | Auction Price | Type | Acquisition | Role |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Virat Kohli | INR 21 crore | Indian | Retained | Batter |
| 2 | Rajat Patidar (C) | INR 11 crore | Indian | Retained | Batter |
| 3 | Yash Dayal | INR 5 crore | Indian | Retained | Bowler |
| 4 | Liam Livingstone (England) | INR 8.75 crore | Overseas | Auction | All-rounder |
| 5 | Phil Salt (England) | INR 11.50 crore | Overseas | Auction | Wicketkeeper/Batter |
| 6 | Jitesh Sharma | INR 11 crore | Indian | Auction | Batter |
| 7 | Josh Hazlewood (Australia) | INR 12.50 crore | Overseas | Auction | Bowler |
| 8 | Rasikh Dar | INR 6 crore | Indian | Auction | Bowler |
| 9 | Suyash Sharma | INR 2.60 crore | Indian | Auction | Bowler |
| 10 | Krunal Pandya | INR 5.75 crore | Indian | Auction | All-rounder |
| 11 | Bhuvneshwar Kumar | INR 10.75 crore | Indian | Auction | Bowler |
| 12 | Swapnil Singh | INR 50 lakh | Indian | RTM | All-rounder |
| 13 | Tim David (Australia) | INR 3 crore | Overseas | Auction | All-rounder |
| 14 | Romario Shepherd (West Indies) | INR 1.5 crore | Overseas | Auction | All-rounder |
| 15 | Nuwan Thushara (Sri Lanka) | INR 1.6 crore | Overseas | Auction | Bowler |
| 16 | Manoj Bhandage | INR 30 lakh | Indian | Auction | Bowler |
| 17 | Jacob Bethell (England) | INR 2.60 crore | Overseas | Auction | All-rounder |
| 18 | Devdutt Padikkal | INR 2 crore | Indian | Auction | Batter |
| 19 | Swastik Chikara | INR 30 lakh | Indian | Auction | Batter |
| 20 | Mohit Rathee | INR 30 lakh | Indian | Auction | Bowler |
| 21 | Abhinandan Singh | INR 30 lakh | Indian | Auction | Bowler |
| 22 | Lungi Ngidi | INR 1 crore | Overseas | Auction | Bowler |
As a new captain, Rajat Patidar will be leading RCB in IPL 2025. This fundamental change in the squad is supposed to bring laurels for RCB. It will be Patidar’s first stint as a captain in the stage of IPL, looking to win the maiden title for RCB in IPL 2025.
