Rajat Patidar entered his name in the record books on Tuesday (May 26) by becoming the first player to captain Royal Challengers Bengaluru to back-to-back Indian Premier League finals. The 32-year-old cricketer from Madhya Pradesh, who was appointed RCB’s full-time captain ahead of IPL 2025, is also the first player to lead the franchise to two IPL finals.
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Before Patidar took charge of the Bengaluru-based franchise, RCB had reached three IPL finals in 17 seasons (all under different captains). But he (Patidar) has now guided them to two consecutive finals in just two seasons as captain.
Captains to lead RCB into IPL finals
| YEAR | CAPTAIN |
| 2009 | Anil Kumble |
| 2011 | Daniel Vettori |
| 2016 | Virat Kohli |
| 2025 | Rajat Patidar |
| 2026 | Rajat Patidar |
Patidar, who is yet to make his T20I debut for India, is also only the
fifth captain in IPL history to qualify for back-to-back IPL finals. He joined the elite list featuring MS Dhoni, Rohit Sharma, Hardik Pandya, and Shreyas Iyer.
Captains to qualify for back-to-back IPL finals
| PLAYER | TEAM | YEAR | OPPONENT IN FINAL | OPPOSITION CAPTAIN |
| MS Dhoni | Chennai Super Kings | 2010 | Mumbai Indians | Sachin Tendulkar |
| Chennai Super Kings | 2011 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Daniel Vettori | |
| Chennai Super Kings | 2012 | Kolkata Knight Riders | Gautam Gambhir | |
| Chennai Super Kings | 2013 | Mumbai Indians | Rohit Sharma | |
| Chennai Super Kings | 2018 | Sunrisers Hyderabad | Kane Williamson | |
| Chennai Super Kings | 2019 | Mumbai Indians | Rohit Sharma | |
| Rohit Sharma | Mumbai Indians | 2019 | Chennai Super Kings | MS Dhoni |
| Mumbai Indians | 2020 | Delhi Capitals | Shreyas Iyer | |
| Hardik Pandya | Gujarat Titans | 2022 | Rajasthan Royals | Sanju Samson |
| Gujarat Titans | 2023 | Chennai Super Kings | MS Dhoni | |
| Shreyas Iyer | Kolkata Knight Riders | 2024 | Sunrisers Hyderabad | Pat Cummins |
| Punjab Kings | 2025 | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | Rajat Patidar | |
| Rajat Patidar | Royal Challengers Bengaluru | 2025 | Punjab Kings | Shreyas Iyer |
| Royal Challengers Bengaluru | 2026 | – | – |
Dhoni led Chennai Super Kings to four consecutive IPL finals from 2010 to 2013 and then back-to-back in 2018 and 2019, while Rohit guided Mumbai Indians to back-to-back finals in 2019 and 2020. Hardik, who made his IPL captaincy debut for Gujarat Titans in 2022, led the team to the finals in both 2022 and 2023. Iyer, meanwhile, captained Kolkata Knight Riders in the 2024 final and Punjab Kings in 2025.
Patidar, who led RCB to their maiden IPL title in 2025, played a sensational knock of 93 runs off just 33 balls on Tuesday in Dharamsala to help RCB crush Gujarat Titans by 92 runs and secure a place in the IPL 2026 final.
The right-handed batter from Madhya Pradesh will now look to become only the third captain in IPL history to win back-to-back IPL titles when RCB take the field in the final on Sunday (May 31).
