Will Rajat Patidar get a place in Team India?Image Credit source: PTI
Royal Challengers Bangalore captain Rajat Patidar once again created a stir in IPL 2026 with his batting. In Qualifier-1 against Gujarat Titans, Patidar played an unbeaten inning of 93 runs in just 33 balls, which included 5 fours and 9 sixes. On the basis of this innings of Patidar, Bengaluru made it to the finals. This has once again given rise to the debate whether Patidar should be given a chance in Team India? Also, in whose place should he be selected in Team India? These questions are sure to arise again and again before next month’s Ireland tour and the one whose place seems to be in the most danger is captain Suryakumar Yadav.
How is Patidar’s performance in IPL 2026?
Rajat Patidar Has consistently performed brilliantly in the IPL for the last 2-3 seasons and has been batting at a stormy strike rate. So far this season, Patidar has scored 483 runs in 13 innings with his bat, in which his strike rate is 197. He has scored these runs at an average of 44 and has scored 5 half-centuries. But not only with his batting but also with his captaincy, he is impressing and that is why there is a demand to give him at least one chance in the Indian T20 team.
Capable to fill the place of Suryakumar Yadav
There is talk of Patidar being selected in the team because captain Suryakumar Yadav, who made the team win the T20 World Cup this year, is going through very poor form. Suryakumar has not batted for more than one and a half years. In the World Cup too, except for one innings, he had failed in all other matches including the final. Even in IPL 2026, he could score only 270 runs. In such a situation, there is a demand to oust them and hence Patidars have emerged as a strong contender. His chances of getting a chance in the team selected for the tour of Ireland and England next month seem strong.
What are the strengths of Patidar?
Rajat Patidar is one of the best T20 batsmen in Indian cricket at present. His biggest strength is his strong batting against spinners. Patidar is neither afraid of hitting big shots nor missing against the spinners in the middle overs. In this matter, he is counted among the most dangerous batsmen of India. He is successful in hitting sixes from inside the crease.
Apart from this, Patidar has the ability to decide the rhythm of the match as per the need. He is capable of playing big shots without wasting any time as soon as he comes to the crease, while playing cautiously in the beginning, he is adept at increasing the pace later on. Same thing happened against Gujarat, where he was playing after scoring 21 runs in 13 balls and then scored 72 runs in the next 20 balls.
He is an expert in hitting sixes and has become the fastest Indian batsman in IPL by hitting 100 sixes in just 943 balls. So far in IPL, he has hit 105 sixes in only 53 matches. At the same time, the record of the Indian batsman who hit the fastest 200 sixes in T20 cricket is also in his name. By achieving this feat in just 105 innings, he broke the record of Abhishek Sharma (125 innings).
How is Patidar’s IPL and T20 record?
Patidar has scored a total of 1,597 runs in 52 innings of 56 IPL matches played so far at an excellent average of 33.98 and a stormy strike rate of 165.15, which includes 1 century and 14 half-centuries. If we look at his overall T20 career, while playing for RCB and Madhya Pradesh, he has scored more than 3300 runs in about 105 innings at an average above 35 and a strike rate of 160, which includes 1 century and 31 half-centuries.
