For a long time, Rajat Patidar’s career could be summed up in one line: “so near, yet so far.” Despite consistently delivering strong performances in domestic cricket, he did not receive the recognition. After an underwhelming IPL 2021 season, he was released by Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). Few could have predicted that just four years later, he would lead the same franchise to a historic title, ending an 18-year wait.A Turning Point in IPL 2022Patidar’s fortunes changed dramatically in IPL 2022. RCB brought him back mid-season as a replacement for the injured Luvnith Sisodia. At that time, Patidar was playing division cricket in Indore and was a little doubtful to join, as his wedding dates were fixed. It was his long-time friend and former Madhya Pradesh captain Shubham Sharma who convinced him otherwise."I begged him, 'bhai tu ja 100 pratishat khilayenge (Please go, hundred percent you will play),'" says Sharma.Breakthrough PerformancesPatidar grabbed the opportunity with both hands, scoring 333 runs in eight innings at a remarkable strike rate of 152.50. His standout moment came with a sensational 112 off 54 balls against Lucknow Super Giants in the Eliminator.Soon after, he capped his dream season with a match-winning century for Madhya Pradesh in the Ranji Trophy final, marking IPL 2022 as a true turning point in his career.International Setbacks and InjuryFollowing his IPL success, Patidar earned his ODI debut and later received his maiden Test call-up against England. However, his initial outings in Test cricket did not yield significant results.An Achilles injury further disrupted his momentum, ruling him out and forcing him to miss IPL 2023 entirely.Reflecting on his journey, former India cricketer and mentor Amay Khurasia said: “Sometimes you have the wings and courage but you don't have the sky to fly."Leadership and IPL TriumphDespite challenges at the international level, Patidar found his rhythm in the IPL. Ahead of IPL 2025, his appointment as RCB captain raised eyebrows, especially given the franchise’s history of unsuccessful leadership stints by legends like Anil Kumble, Daniel Vettori, Virat Kohli, and Faf du Plessis.However, Patidar proved his critics wrong. With consistent performances and sharp tactical awareness, he led RCB to a long-awaited IPL title."To be honest, I don't need to do anything extra," Patidar said while answering what has changed in his captaincy since last year's triumph in Ahmedabad."Our management, coaching staff and senior players have a lot of experience and that is helping me a lot as a leader. I get so many ideas from VK (Virat Kohli) bhai, Devdutt (Padikkal), Jitesh (Sharma), (Josh) Hazlewood and Tim David. I think their ideas and experience are helping me a lot. "I don't need to do anything separately. I am not as expressive as I am individually. But with game awareness, I understand situations well. I communicate as much as I can so that I can get more ideas about what we can do better. Overall, I don't need to change anything. My strength, my calmness, and the way I back my instincts, that is what I am doing.""From the very start of the season, our focus has simply been on winning every game. If we win here, the team will get a good break before the final, which is important, and I think everyone is looking forward to that," he said.Eyes on a Historic FeatLegends like MS Dhoni (2010, 2011) and Rohit Sharma (2019, 2020) remain the only captains to win back-to-back IPL titles.Now, Rajat Patidar stands just two victories away from joining this elite club, an incredible milestone for someone whose journey once seemed stuck between promise and missed opportunity.[With TOI inputs]