Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) inched a step closer to their maiden IPL trophy as they defeated Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in the Eliminator of IPL 2022 to book a clash with Rajasthan Royals (RR) in Qualifier 2. RCB’s win was backed by some fine bowling at death by Josh Hazlewood and Harshal Patel but Rajat Patidar was the biggest architect of the win for RCB.
The batter tore apart the LSG bowling and fetched himself an elite century. Patidar’s (112 off 54) helped RCB post a daunting 207-4 in their quota of overs, which proved too much for the KL Rahul-led side. Patidar has blown hot and cold in the tournament, but this century will do his confidence a world of good. Even former skipper Virat Kohli was in awe of the youngster and termed him as the one for the future. Meanwhile, many will be surprised to know that Patidar was initially not supposed to be playing for RCB this year.
After being released by RCB last year, the batter went unsold in the mega auction. He was supposed to get married in May, as reported by the New Indian Express, but an injury to Luvnith Sisodia opened the doors for him to make a comeback to the RCB team. The franchise roped him as a replacement for the injured player for INR 20 Lakh in the first week of April. As fate turned out, Patidar postponed his marriage to play for RCB and made a name for himself with a breathtaking century.
“The plan was to get him married on May 9. It was supposed to be a small function and I had booked a hotel too in Indore,” Manohar Patidar, Rajat’s father, was quoted as saying by the newspaper.
Patidar will now get married in June, after fulfilling his duties with the Madhya Pradesh Ranji team that will take on Punjab on June 6 in the Quarter-Final.
“The marriage was not supposed to be a grand affair, so we didn’t get invitation cards printed. I have booked a hotel for limited guests but the booking has been advanced as we plan to hold the function in July once he is free from his responsibility with the Madhya Pradesh Ranji team,” he added.