RCB thought of replacing Virat Kohli as captain with Parthiv Patel in IPL 2019

In an interesting revelation, the former England all-rounder Moeen Ali has disclosed that the Royal Challengers Bengaluru franchise (RCB), then coached by Gary Kirsten, wanted to axe Virat Kohli as the captain ahead of the IPL 2019 season.

Speaking in an exclusive interview with Sports Tak, Moeen further revealed that Kirsten wanted to have the keeper-batter Parthiv Patel as the new RCB captain for that particular season. However, Moeen wasn’t aware of the reason why they didn’t go ahead as per the plan.

"In the final year, when Gary Kirsten was there-after the first year, I believe Parthiv was in line to become captain. He had a brilliant cricketing brain. That was the talk at the time. I don't know what happened or why it didn't materialise, but I'm sure he was seriously considered for the role,” Moeen Ali told Sports Tak.

It’s important to note that Kohli went on to lead the franchise in that season and stepped down from his role after the conclusion of the IPL 2021 season. However, in 2019, RCB could finish at the bottom-most position in the standings.

Though they made it to the playoffs in the IPL 2020 and 2021 seasons, under the captaincy of Virat Kohli, they couldn’t lift the silverware. Notably, they bagged their first-ever title in the recently concluded IPL 2025 season under Rajat Patidar.

On the other hand, Kirsten, in his interview in 2019, revealed that the franchise wanted to make some structural changes after consulting with the owners

"There are some structural changes that need to be made that have maybe been around for quite a long time. This is my first year as the head coach, so I've got a better understanding of what those are. We'll certainly discuss with our owners and look into that for next year," Kirsten had said in May 2019.

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