18-Year Wait Ends: RCB Crowned IPL Champions For First Time

After 18 years of heartbreaks and near-misses, RCB finally lifted their maiden IPL trophy.

18-Year Wait Ends: RCB Crowned IPL Champions For First Time

Source : PTI

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) put on a dominant all-round display to defeat Punjab Kings (PBKS) by 6 runs in the IPL 2025 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

After 18 years of heartbreaks and near-misses, RCB finally lifted their maiden IPL trophy, etching their name in the league's history books.

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) posted a challenging total of 190/9 against Punjab Kings (PBKS). This marked RCB’s first appearance in an IPL final since 2016.

RCB post competetive total

Opening the innings, Virat Kohli anchored RCB with a composed knock of 43 off 35 balls, including 3 boundaries. Though he didn’t unleash big hits, his steady presence gave RCB a platform to build on. Meanwhile, Jitesh Sharma turned the heat up in the death overs, smashing 24 off just 10 balls, including 2 fours and 2 sixes - three of which came in a single over against Kyle Jamieson.

Middle-Order Contributions and Late Collapse

RCB got useful contributions from Mayank Agarwal (24 off 17), Rajat Patidar, Liam Livingstone, and others, helping them maintain momentum for most of the innings.

However, the momentum shifted in the final overs as RCB lost 4 wickets in the last 19 runs and finished at 190/9. From a strong 171/5, they faltered in the death, losing 5 wickets for just 58 runs in the final 5 overs.

Jamieson, Arshdeep Take Three Each

For Punjab Kings, Kyle Jamieson and Arshdeep Singh took 3 wickets each, though both were expensive — Jamieson gave away 48 runs, while Arshdeep conceded 40 runs in their respective 4-over spells. Azmatullah Omarzai took the crucial wicket of Virat Kohli, finishing with 1/35, while Yuzvendra Chahal and Vijay Kumar Vishak picked up one wicket each.

Playing XIs

Royal Challengers Bangalore: Philip Salt, Virat Kohli, Mayank Agarwal, Rajat Patidar (C), Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma (WK), Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal, Josh Hazlewood.

Punjab Kings: Priyansh Arya, Josh Inglis (WK), Shreyas Iyer (C), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Azmatullah Omarzai, Kyle Jamieson, Vijay Kumar Vishak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal.