Bhopal, July 28 (IANS) Indian cricketer Rajat Patidar, under whose leadership Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) won its first IPL title this year, called on Madhya Pradesh Chief Minister Mohan Yadav at his official residence in Bhopal on Monday.

Chief Minister Yadav welcomed Indore-based cricketer Patidar, who became the first cricketer from Madhya Pradesh to lead an Indian Premier League (IPL) team. The duo held a brief discussion.

During the meeting, the Chief Minister also honoured him with an incentive of Rs 5 lakh for his remarkable achievement in cricket and contribution to Madhya Pradesh cricket. It was a courtesy meeting, the Chief Minister’s office said in a statement.

“Today, I met the RCB captain and our Indore cricketer Rajat Patidar. He was awarded an incentive amount of Rs 5 lakh,” the Chief Minister wrote in a post on X, adding, “Your outstanding performance has brought pride to Madhya Pradesh. Wishing you a bright future”.

Rajat Patidar (32) entered his name in the history books on June 3 by becoming the first Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) captain to win the Indian Premier League (IPL) title. Under Patidar’s leadership, RCB defeated Punjab Kings by six runs in the IPL 2025 final played at Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Patidar is also the first cricketer from Madhya Pradesh to captain a team in an IPL final. His leadership, especially his calmness during IPL, was appreciated by the senior cricketers after RCB won the title. Due to his phenomenal domestic season and his performances in the 2022 IPL season, Patidar was named in the One-Day International (ODI) squad for the series against South Africa in 2023. He was also included in the team for a series against New Zealand; however, he didn’t get the opportunity to play.

Patidar finally made his ODI debut on December 21, 2023, against South Africa, where he scored 22 runs in 16 balls. Later, he made his Test debut on February 2, 2024, in the second match of the series against England, scoring 32 and 9 runs in the first and second innings, respectively. Before it, Patidar led Madhya Pradesh in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy 2024-25 and was the second highest run scorer of the tournament with a total of 428 runs.

–IANS

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