IPL 2025: Virat Kohli in tears as RCB bring an end to 18-year wait for IPL title with victory over PBKS
IPL dream comes true for Royal Challengers Bengaluru
An 18-year dream has been fulfilled for fans of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru, who finally watched their team secure the biggest prize in T20 franchise cricket, winning the Indian Premier League for the first time in their history.
In front of almost 100,000 at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, the Punjab Kings won the toss and elected to bowl, and made a dream start, knocking over the dangerous Phil Salt in the second over for just 16 runs.
However, Virat Kohli, who has lived through the highs and lows with the Royal Challengers for 18 years, was once again the man for the big occasion, anchoring the team at the top of the order with what turned out to be a match-winning knock of 43 from 35 deliveries, which confirmed two of our IPL predictions for the match.
RCB’s middle order all got starts but failed to kick on, with Mayank Agarwal, skipper Rajat Patidar, Liam Livingstone and Jitesh Sharma all scoring in the mid-20s, while Romario Shepard produced a crucial cameo at the death, with 17 runs off nine balls.
After posting a defendable total of 190/9 in their 20 overs, the men from Bengaluru looked to be in trouble when the Punjab Kings shot out of the blocks to 72/1 in the eighth over, but the introduction of Krunal Pandya proved to be a defining moment, with the spinner knocking over Prabhsimran Singh and Josh Inglis in quick succession.
Shashank Singh delivered one of the most memorable innings of the season, smashing 61 runs off just 30 deliveries at a stunning strike rate of 203.33, but Pandya, Yash Dayal and Bhuveneshwar Kumar proved too good at the death and held their opponents to 184/7, six runs fewer than they needed to win the title.
Emotional Kohli reacts to RCB’s long-awaited IPL triumph
When the final ball was bowled and the Royal Challengers Bengaluru were confirmed as champions for the first time in 18 years, Kohli was overcome with emotion and dropped to his knees to soak in the moment.
Despite all his success with the Indian national team, the IPL trophy is about the only award that has eluded the superstar batsman, and one that any neutral or Indian cricket fan would have wanted the great man to lift at least once in his career.
In a truly touching moment, King Kohli took a moment to not only thank his current teammates but also shout out some of his former ones, particularly South African legend AB de Villiers, who was in attendance at the Narendra Modi Stadium alongside another RCB great, Chris Gayle. Kohli said:
“What he (AB) has done for the franchise is absolutely tremendous. I told him before the game, this one is as much yours as it is ours, and I want you to celebrate with us when we lift that trophy by the end of the night."
Asked about how he felt to finally win the IPL, the RCB star explained:
"I never thought this day would come. This means so much to me. I've given each and every ounce of my energy to this team. To have finally won the IPL is an amazing feeling. I have stayed loyal to this team, no matter what. My heart is with Bangalore, my soul is with Bangalore and this is the team I'll play for till the last day I play the IPL."
Kohli will have the opportunity to take some time off and enjoy the victory, as he will not be travelling to England with India for their upcoming Test series after announcing his retirement from the longest format last month. He will return to the national setup for their ODI tour of Bangladesh in mid-August.
