History Made: RCB Crowned IPL Champions After 17 Years

RCB have finally broken their 17-year title drought, clinching the IPL championship. The team was led by Rajat Patidar, an interesting and unexpected twist, considering he's traditionally been a middle-order batter and not a regular captain. They defended 190/9 successfully, winning by just 6 runs against Punjab Kings (PBKS). Krunal Pandya, usually associated with Mumbai Indians or Lucknow Super Giants, played a crucial role with a tight spell of 2 for 17 in the middle overs — a game-changing contribution. RCB's 190/9: A Bowler’s Game in a Batter’s Era In a T20 landscape where 200-plus scores are routine, RCB’s 190/9 at Ahmedabad seemed below par—especially given PBKS had chased 204 with an over to spare at the same venue just two days earlier. But this pitch was different. Slower. Stickier. Less forgiving. Virat Kohli’s 43 off 35 seemed almost out of step with the modern game, restrained and old-fashioned. But it was also deeply attuned to the conditions. The surface offered spongy bounce, and Kohli’s pull shot—the barometer of his fluency—never clicked. Still, he held the innings together when strokeplay was far from easy. PBKS’s Chase Falters Under Pressure Chasing 191, PBKS never quite found momentum. The experienced trio of Krunal Pandya (2-17), Bhuvneshwar Kumar, and Yash Dayal put on a middle-overs clinic, squeezing the life out of the chase. Each of them had tasted IPL glory before—now they were central to RCB’s. And yet, the ending was deceptively dramatic. Shashank Singh played an innings for the ages, smashing an unbeaten 61 off 30. He ended the match with fireworks—6, 4, 6, 6 off Josh Hazlewood—but it came just too late. PBKS had needed 29 off the final over, and Hazlewood's opening two dot balls effectively shut the door. Virat, the Symbol, Stands Tall When it was over, the cameras panned, predictably, to the man in red and gold, donning the No. 18 shirt. Virat Kohli, the face of the franchise, the heart of its soul, stood tall. For all the criticism of his T20 game—too slow, too conservative—he understood the battle, the pitch, the pressure. This wasn’t a game for flashy centuries. It was a game of grit, of playing the percentages, of not blinking first. And fittingly, in the 18th season, No. 18 finally held the cup aloft. Royal Challengers Bengaluru 190 for 9 (Kohli 43, Arshdeep 3-40, Jamieson 3-48) beat Punjab Kings 184 for 7 (Shashank 61*, Inglis 39, Krunal 2-17, Bhuvneshwar 2-38) by six runs