Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) secured their first Indian Premier League (IPL) title on Tuesday, June 3, ending an 18-year wait with a six-run win over Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the IPL 2025 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
Batting first, RCB posted 190/9 in their 20 overs, before delivering a disciplined bowling performance to restrict PBKS to 184/7. All-rounder Krunal Pandya played a key role with the ball, finishing with figures of 2 for 17 in four overs, helping RCB take control during the middle overs of the second innings.
This win marks RCB’s first IPL title since the tournament’s inception in 2008. The victory also saw Virat Kohli, who has represented the team in every season since, claim an IPL title for the first time in his career.
RCB, led by first-time captain Rajat Patidar, were put under pressure early in their innings by a strong bowling effort from PBKS. Left-arm pacer Arshdeep Singh (3-40) and Kyle Jamieson (3-48) were the standout bowlers for Punjab, keeping the scoring rate in check and picking up wickets at regular intervals. RCB’s top contributions came from Kohli (43), Patidar (26), and Jitesh Sharma (24), helping the team cross the 190-mark.
Chasing 191, PBKS got off to a steady start, reaching 52/1. However, they suffered a collapse in the middle overs. Wickets of Prabhsimran Singh (Impact Player), Shreyas Iyer, and Josh Inglis in quick succession left them struggling at 98/4. Pandya’s spell and Romario Shepherd’s key dismissal of Iyer proved to be turning points in the game.
PBKS captain Iyer, who had scored an unbeaten 87 in the Eliminator, was dismissed for just 1 in the final. Inglis looked threatening with a 23-ball 39 but was also removed during this period of pressure.
Shashank Singh, batting in the lower middle-order, revived PBKS's hopes with an aggressive knock of 61 not out off 30 balls, hitting multiple boundaries in the final overs. He received brief support from Nehal Wadhera (15 off 18) and Marcus Stoinis, who hit a six before being dismissed on the next delivery by Bhuvneshwar Kumar.
Needing 47 off the last three overs and 29 off the final six balls, PBKS were unable to close the gap, despite a six and four from Shashank in the penultimate over. Yash Dayal held his nerve in the 20th over to see RCB over the line.
RCB’s bowling attack, comprising Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar (2/38), Hazlewood, Shepherd, Suyash Sharma, and Dayal, executed their plans effectively on a slightly sluggish pitch that made stroke-making challenging.