Rajat Patidar has become the talk of the town after his stupendous knock in the IPL 2022 Eliminator match between the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Lucknow Super Giants. LSG won the toss and elected to field first at Eden Gardens on Wednesday.
The uncapped batter scored 112 runs off 54 balls, smashing 12 fours and seven sixes. Not many fans knew Rajat Patidar before tonight's game, but now he is the talking point among the cricketing fraternity.
What is most ironic is that Patidar was one of the many uncapped players who registered for the IPL 2022 mega-auction. Since he had a decent outing with the Royal Challengers Bangalore last year, many fans expected him to earn an IPL deal this year as well. However, none of the franchises bid for him. Midway during the season, Luvnith Sisodia was ruled due to an injury, prompting RCB to sign Patidar as a replacement player.
His century has captured the imagination of the entire nation but he is not a stranger to memorable performances even in his initial matches.
While he scored a fifty on his List-A debut, Rajat Patidar started his first-class career with a century against Baroda. He scored 60 in the first innings and followed it up with a 127-ball 101 in the second innings.
Madhya Pradesh won that match by 87 runs. Interestingly, former Punjab Kings spinner Swapnil Singh picked up his wicket in both the innings.
A massive fan of Virat Kohli and AB Devilliers, it would be interesting to see how he carries the Royal Challengers Bangalore to their first ever victory.
Image credit: IPL
