SMAT 2025: Rajat Patidar returns from knee injury, set to join Madhya Pradesh for third round

Rajat Patidar has recovered from a left-knee niggle and has been cleared to return to action by the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence. He will rejoin the Madhya Pradesh squad in Kolkata on Friday and will be available for selection from the third round of matches in the Syed Mushtaq Ali Trophy (SMAT) starting Sunday, November 30.

Patidar, the captain of Madhya Pradesh, has been out of competitive cricket for the past four weeks. After featuring for India A in the first unofficial Test against South Africa A on October 30, he began experiencing persistent discomfort in his left knee. The issue first surfaced during MP’s opening Ranji Trophy match against Punjab on October 15, eventually forcing him to miss the next two rounds of the competition.

According to ESPNcricinfo, Patidar completed a 10-day rehabilitation program and subsequently received the Return to Play (RTP) clearance from the Centre of Excellence medical team. He has resumed batting and has been building up his workload steadily. Before the injury, Patidar was in excellent touch. He began the Ranji season with a brilliant double century against Punjab and had also showcased superb form earlier in the season, scoring two centuries and two half-centuries while leading Central Zone to the Duleep Trophy title.

The upcoming SMAT 2025-26 fixtures will mark Patidar’s first white-ball appearance since the end of IPL 2025, where he memorably captained Royal Challengers Bengaluru to their maiden IPL title. His performances and leadership in the tournament earned him elevation to all-format captaincy for Madhya Pradesh, taking over from Shubham Sharma.

MP entered this SMAT season with high expectations after finishing as runners-up last year. Patidar played a pivotal role in that campaign, emerging as the second-highest run-getter with 428 runs in nine innings at an impressive strike rate of 186.08. His tally of 27 sixes was the highest in the tournament.

Madhya Pradesh have had a shaky start this season, losing their opening match to Hyderabad courtesy of a match-winning half-century from Rahul Buddhi. They will look to bounce back in their next fixture against Bihar on November 28 at Eden Gardens, Kolkata.