"I thought he missed a trick there" - Aakash Chopra on Rajat Patidar's captaincy in RCB vs KKR IPL 2025 clash

Former India player Aakash Chopra has opined that the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) captain Rajat Patidar missed a trick in their IPL 2025 clash against the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). He questioned the newly appointed skipper's bowling changes in the powerplay overs.

Despite Patidar's debatable moves, RCB restricted KKR to 174/8 in the IPL 2025 opener in Kolkata on Saturday, March 22. The visitors then achieved the target with seven wickets and 22 deliveries to spare to start their campaign with a win.

Reflecting on KKR's innings in a video shared on his YouTube channel 'Aakash Chopra', the former India opener wasn't convinced with Patidar's decision to give the fourth over to Rasikh Dar and the following one to Krunal Pandya, with the duo conceding 31 runs when the hosts had been restricted to 9/1 after three overs.

"RCB started very well and then suddenly they started getting hit and it continued. We had discussed yesterday morning as well as to how Rajat Patidar would captain. I thought he missed a trick there. Three good overs had been bowled and he brought Rasikh Salam for the fourth over," Chopra said (12:20).

"I thought Yash Dayal could have been given one more over. He brought Krunal Pandya to bowl the fifth over, and I am thinking - 'Don't do that, what are you doing, my brother?' Ajinkya Rahane started hitting there and then kept hitting," he added.

The former KKR player lauded the franchise's skipper Ajinkya Rahane for playing a crucial knock.

"100 runs were scored in the first 10 overs. 200 should have been scored from there. Rahane was absolutely outstanding. Scoring runs was important from Rahane's point of view because once you do that, you start commanding respect. You are not a novice but you have come into a new camp," Chopra observed.

Rahane smashed 56 runs off 31 deliveries with the help of six fours and four sixes. He added 103 runs for the second wicket with Sunil Narine (44 off 26) in just 9.1 overs.

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"If your weakest link becomes your strongest link, you say they did a great job" - Aakash Chopra lauds RCB spinners' spells in IPL 2025 clash vs KKR

Krunal Pandya registered figures of 3/29 in four overs in RCB's IPL 2025 clash against KKR. [P/C: Getty]

In the same video, Aakash Chopra praised the RCB spinners for helping them bounce back in their IPL 2025 clash against KKR.

"Things changed after that and there it seemed the match would go in some other direction because Krunal Pandya picked up three wickets. We have been asking whether RCB's spin bowling is their weakest link. However, if your weakest link becomes your strongest link, you say they did a great job. The two spinners together pick up four wickets," he said (13:35).

While observing that Krunal Pandya bowled a potent spell, the analyst added that Suyash Sharma, although he conceded 47 runs in four overs, picked up the prized scalp of Andre Russell.

"Krunal Pandya picked up three wickets despite his first over being expensive. He was good. He was bowling within the stumps, and it seemed like the ball was getting stuck a little. I still feel Suyash was very expensive and bowling a lot of loose deliveries but he got the dangerous Andre Russell out," Chopra elaborated.

To conclude, Aakash Chopra opined that KKR would be disappointed with their batting performance in their IPL 2025 clash against RCB. He pointed out that the defending champions couldn't even reach 175 when they seemed headed to a 225-plus total.