'I make it a point to watch every net session of Virat bhaiya': Rajat Patidar

After defeats in seven of their first eight games in Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) have turned the tide in some style. They won their last five matches and remain in the playoffs race heading into their final league game against Chennai Super Kings on Saturday. With 320 runs at a strike-rate of 179.77, including five half-centuries, Rajat Patidar has been one of the key performers for RCB so far. The 30-year-old talks about the team’s fightback, batting in the middle order, and learnings from Virat Kohli.

Excerpts from the interview:

It’s been a remarkable comeback by RCB this season. What helped bring about the switch?

Of course, it hurts when things don’t go your way. But to build some momentum, we spoke about wanting to play for pride. Everyone was always working hard, we never stopped believing. The atmosphere within the team was nice even when we weren’t winning, each player got support from the franchise as well. That was very important to be able to mount a comeback.

RCB’s bowlers were struggling in the first half of the season but bowled out oppositions in the last three games. What’s worked for them?

I think there’s been a change in the mindset of every bowler in our squad. Even in T20s, picking wickets is most important when you’re trying to defend. During the initial phase too, our bowlers were trying to get breakthroughs in the powerplay but perhaps the execution was lacking. But I’m glad they kept trying to find answers and have got the momentum now. It instilled belief in the batters as well that we can turn things around.

Batting in the middle order, you’re expected to keep the scoring rate up and take risks with the field spread. How difficult is it to let go of that fear of getting out and just attack from ball one?

As a batter in T20s, you have no choice but to have the intent to hit boundaries from the start. You can’t think that let’s just take some time and then hit later, it’s usually too late by then. My role this year is different as I’ve been asked to bat in the middle order. It may come across that I like playing against spinners more, but I’m a top order batter and I like facing pacers more. But since I’ve been asked to bat in the middle order, I’ve had to change my approach a bit because you don’t get the time to settle in like top order batters do. At the top, you have that slight cushion to get set before going for your shots. But in the middle order, you need to be prepared in the dugout itself so that you can execute big shots immediately once you’re out there.

This season has been a bit up and down for you with the bat. How challenging is it to have belief when things aren’t going your way?

I just accept the situation. In sports, you won’t get success all the time so it’s important to always be prepared to face failure. When you’re playing in a high-level tournament like the IPL, you must have the belief that you’re the best. It all starts from there because only then can you dominate. If you’re lacking in confidence, things won’t work out.

Kohli is having another impressive season. How has it been to play alongside him?

Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have always been my two biggest batting idols. I make it a point to watch every net session of Virat bhaiya and notice his foot work and stuff. I don’t go about making too many changes to my own game, but I try and see if I can add little things that I learn from him. You’re filled with confidence when you’re batting with him in matches, you know the world’s best batter is at the other end. He guides me in terms of where the bowlers could bowl, and which areas we could target. There’s so much to learn from how he goes about his innings, how he thinks about his batting.

You made your Test debut earlier this year in what was a memorable series win for India against England. What was that experience like?

That series will always be special to me as I made my debut and we earned a one-sided victory. Personally, things didn’t go as I thought they would but that’s part of the game. The special part for me was the support I got from Rohit bhaiya, the coaches and the rest of my teammates. The fact that you’ve made it to the Indian Test team means there’s something special about you. I’ll always take confidence from the support I got in that series despite not being at my best with the bat.