Ahmedabad, June 3 — The wait that spanned nearly two decades, peppered with heartbreaks and near-misses, finally ended in euphoric scenes at the Narendra Modi Stadium on Tuesday night as Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) clinched their first-ever Indian Premier League (IPL) title, holding off Punjab Kings (PBKS) by six runs in a nerve-jangling finale.
A record 91,419 spectators — predominantly dressed in red and echoing the rallying cry “Ee Sala Cup Namde” — witnessed the moment Virat Kohli, long regarded as Indian cricket’s eternal warrior, finally lifted the elusive silverware. Kohli, visibly emotional, shed tears of joy as RCB held their nerve in the final over to defend a total of 190.
It was a culmination of years of promise and passion for a franchise that has played host to some of the IPL’s most celebrated names but had never crossed the finishing line until now.
A triumph fashioned with the ball
Having posted a competitive 190 for nine on the back of contributions from Kohli (43), Rajat Patidar (26) and a late burst, RCB executed a disciplined bowling performance under pressure. The final over equation read 29 runs needed for PBKS, and Josh Hazlewood, the seasoned campaigner, delivered with clinical precision.
The defining moments of the defence, however, arrived in the middle overs — a phase where the experienced Krunal Pandya (4-0-17-2) turned the screws on Punjab’s batting line-up. With Nehal Wadhera struggling to rotate strike and Josh Inglis forced into errors, RCB applied a chokehold that proved decisive.
Romario Shepherd, who had earlier dropped a catch in the deep, redeemed himself by removing the dangerous Shreyas Iyer for just one, triggering a crucial collapse. Hazlewood and Mohammed Siraj bowled with aggression and precision upfront, while Karn Sharma and Suyash Sharma provided valuable overs despite early setbacks.
Punjab falter in second final
For Punjab Kings, this was only their second appearance in an IPL final — the previous one in 2014 also ending in heartbreak. Chasing 191, they found themselves constantly having to recover from setbacks.
After a cautious Powerplay that yielded 52 runs for the loss of Priyansh Arya — spectacularly caught by Phil Salt at the square-leg fence — PBKS never quite found the commanding partnership needed. Prabhsimran Singh rode his luck early, while Inglis top-scored with 39 before falling to Krunal’s guile.
Shashank Singh’s unbeaten 61 off 30 balls provided hope and kept the chase alive until the final over, but the ever-rising asking rate and lack of support at the other end proved telling.
Kohli’s defining moment
Earlier in the evening, RCB’s innings was a tale of steady accumulation and sporadic bursts. Salt’s early departure for 16, after a brief assault on Arshdeep Singh, meant Kohli had to anchor the innings. Though his 43 off 35 was measured, it also invited criticism for slowing the scoring during the middle overs. From the 11th to the 15th over, RCB managed just 35 runs — a period where Punjab’s bowlers, particularly Jamieson (3-48) and Arshdeep (3-40), asserted control.
But once Kohli departed, the lower middle order found the license to attack, plundering 22 runs in the 17th over before a flurry of wickets in the death overs restricted them to 190.
Legends watching on
In the stands, watching on with pride, were two men who had defined the early years of RCB’s rise — AB de Villiers and Chris Gayle. Both icons, who played pivotal roles in shaping the team’s identity, joined the post-match celebrations, their presence symbolic of the journey the franchise has undergone.
As Kohli and the rest of the RCB contingent lifted the trophy amid a blaze of fireworks, it wasn’t just the culmination of a season, but of 17 long years of persistence, heartbreak and unwavering belief.
For once, the tag of perennial underachievers was cast aside. On a night where margins were tight, RCB emerged triumphant — the crown, finally theirs.
The Chenab Times News Desk