Even though Rajat Patidar might have won two successive IPLs for RCB, but then the franchise is already making plans for the future, where they see another upcoming talent as a leader. Perhaps that is the right approach too; look at CSK, where they are struggling with MS Dhoni‘s successor, Ruturaj Gaikwad for years. So, RCB director of cricket hinted, that the next in line could be, none other than Devdutt Padikkal.
Devdutt Padikkal to be named RCB captain?
As far as his performance in IPL 2026 is concerned, he went on to score 464 runs in 15 innings with a strike-rate of 168.72. Babat was all praise for the youngster, for continuing the intensity, and the momentum that was provided by Phil Salt and Virat Kohli, at the top of the order.
“We wanted him to really push the boundaries of his intent, and to really deliver an impact. We had Salty (Salt) and Virat going pretty hard at the top, and we wanted Dev (Padikkal) to continue that momentum when he came to the crease. And to his credit, he’s totally bought into that and embraced that. And he’s batted very selflessly, and I think that’s huge credit to Dev,” Bobat said, speaking on the ‘RCB’s Trophy Quest’ documentary on their official YouTube channel.
Management sees a leader in him
He also went on to explain the reason behind his choice, as to why Padikkal could be a future RCB captain. “I’ve also been really impressed with him as a character. I think he’s very leaderful, actually. I think he’s a potential captain of the future,” Bobat further added. All this, when Padikkal is yet to establish his feet into international cricket, which could be a huge confidence-booster for him.
One of the things that also works in his favour, as per batting coach Dinesh Karthik is, that he is the only one from Bengaluru, and gets the pulse of the city. “He’s been an extraordinary performer. First, he’s the only one in this team having the pleasure of being a local. He represents Bengaluru. And he’s a thorough Bengaluru man. He embodies it. He’s able to assess and understand game situations exceedingly well for a man of his age,” said Karthik.
