Rajat PatidarI have grown as one of the most influential figures. IPL Continued in 2026 when he led Royal Challengers Bangalore to their second consecutive title. The RCB captain not only led the franchise from the front but also played an important role with the bat, helping his team successfully defend the crown they won a year ago.Patidar enjoyed another stellar season in the middle order, scoring 501 runs at an impressive strike rate of 192.69. Time and again, he delivered in pressure situations, whether stabilizing the innings after early wickets or counter-attacking when RCB needed quick runs.Despite these contributions, the former Australian captain Michael Clarke It feels that Patidar’s performance has not received the recognition it deserves.Speaking on the Beyond23 Cricket Podcast, Clarke called the RCB captain one of the most underrated performers of IPL 2026, arguing that Virat Kohli Often this means that other important stakeholders receive less attention.Clarke said, “Patidar once again had a fantastic tournament and he’s my under-the-radar player. Virat Kohli will always be the most talked about player in the team. But the way Patidar has led and done the best of all his players has been the best.”Patidar’s leadership credentials have grown significantly in the last two seasons. Under his captaincy, RCB transformed from a team that spent years chasing the first title to one that has now won back-to-back championships.For Clarke, these achievements should place the 31-year-old firmly in the conversation about India’s T20 team.“Even though he is 31, he should be talked about in the Indian T20 team. I don’t know if he will captain India or not, but he has leadership qualities. His middle-order batting has been phenomenal. Batting at No. 4 is the toughest in T20, and he gets into position and just explodes,” he added.The former Australian captain believes that Patidar’s value is more than his batting. According to Clarke, captaining a team that has won back-to-back IPL titles is an achievement that selectors cannot ignore.While competition for places in Indian cricket is fierce, Clarke believes Patidar has done enough to push himself to the front of the queue for white-ball opportunities.“India has a lot of talent right now, and a lot of them are fighting to get into the Indian team this IPL. But if you captain a team that wins back-to-back IPL tournaments, the BCCI and the Indian selectors will be talking about it. His name should be at the front of the line-up in T20s, and he can be seen in ODI cricket as well,” Clarke said.With 501 runs, a strike rate approaching 200 and yet another IPL trophy as captain, Patidar’s case has certainly become hard to ignore. Whether that translates into India’s memory remains to be seen, but Clarke believes the RCB captain has earned the right to be part of the conversation.
