Rajat Patidar Leads RCB to Historic IPL Title Wins

Rajat Patidar has made history by leading Royal Challengers Bengaluru to back-to-back IPL titles in 2025 and 2026. After a challenging start to his career with RCB, Patidar's leadership has transformed the team into champions. With aspirations for a third consecutive title, he reflects on the journey and the significance of their achievements. Meanwhile, CSK's near-miss at a third consecutive title adds to the competitive narrative of the IPL. Read on to explore the details of this thrilling cricket saga.

By Narendra Chaudhary Jun 1, 2026, 23:13 IST

RCB's Remarkable Journey Under Patidar

Rajat Patidar has achieved an extraordinary feat as the captain of Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), guiding the team to consecutive IPL championships over two seasons. Initially joining RCB in 2021, Patidar went unsold during the IPL 2022 mega-auction but made a comeback as a replacement player. His journey took a significant turn when he was named captain ahead of IPL 2025, leading RCB to break their title drought by clinching the IPL 2025 trophy against Punjab Kings in the final.

In 2026, under Patidar's leadership, RCB triumphed over Gujarat Titans (GT) in the final, marking them as the third team to retain the IPL title, following in the footsteps of Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mumbai Indians (MI). After securing their second consecutive title, Patidar expressed his ambitions for the future, stating, "It feels great, and it's a special birthday gift for me. I couldn't have asked for a better present. While I'm delighted with the achievement, I always try to stay focused on the present. We won in 2025 and again in 2026, and we'll certainly celebrate this success. But our focus will soon shift to how we can make it three titles in a row.” No team has yet managed to win three IPL titles consecutively.

CSK's Near Miss at History

CSK, the first franchise to achieve back-to-back IPL victories, came close to making history with three consecutive wins. After securing titles in 2010 and 2011, they reached the final again in 2012 but were defeated by Gautam Gambhir's Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). CSK also reached the IPL 2013 final, where they lost to Mumbai Indians. MI managed to win back-to-back titles in 2019 and 2020 but have not returned to the finals since then. Hardik Pandya has been at the helm of MI since IPL 2024.