Rajat Patidar is all set to return in the remaining leg of IPL 2025 as the skipper of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). Under his leadership, the franchise is close to making it to the playoffs.
RCB takes on KKR on May 17 as the IPL 2025 resumes after a week-long break. Patidar has been an influential skipper so far in the season, making all the right calls as a skipper.
When the season resumes, his big task will be to ensure that the team continues to march forward with the same momentum it had when the season got postponed. So far in IPL 2025, Rajat Patidar has scored 239 runs in 11 games at an average of 23.90, striking over 140.
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Need To Develop That Shot - Rajat Patidar On Honing The Sweep Shot
Before their next match against KKR on May 17, Patidar opened up on how he honed his skills against playing spin. He highlighted hw playing club cricket on unprepared tracks helped him improve his game against spin.
"When I started at the club level, most games were on unprepared wickets. You did not get well-prepared surfaces, so I gradually got used to playing spin. Before my Ranji debut, we had a home-and-away format where the home team prepared the wickets. Since we had three quality spinners, we opted for spin-friendly tracks, and I knew I would be playing on a square-turner," said Patidar.
Next, he spoke about how he practiced the sweep shot to counter the threat against spinners and put them on the back foot.
"There was only one thought in my mind: if I had to score runs on those pitches, I needed to develop that shot. It is a shot that can put pressure on bowlers on turning tracks," he added.
Finally, he spoke about being influenced by Rahul Dravid and learning a lot by watching how he played against spin.
"I saw a lot of his batting in Test matches, especially on spin tracks. The way he used his footwork, whether it was the front foot or the back foot, and how he used the crease, I got to learn a lot from him," he concluded saying.
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RCB Inch Closer To Playoff Spot
RCB are placed second on the IPL 2025 points table with 16 points and a win against KKR on Saturday will almost give them a spot in the playoffs.
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