Images from the IPL 2025 Final between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings at the Narendra Modi stadium, in Ahmedabad, on Tuesday.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Virat Kohli washed away 18 years of hurt and disappointment, conquering Punjab Kings by six runs to lift their maiden Indian Premier League title, in Ahmedabad, on Tuesday.
The final turned out to be a battle of nerves and RCB certainly channelled their years of disappointment and pain to come back roaring in the contest and seal a commanding victory.
A partisan crowd did not give up on RCB even as they struggled to find the flourish with the bat and ended up posting a total of 190/9 with superstar Kohli making a laborious 35-ball 43.
At the break, RCB's total did not look enough but a persistent effort from their bowlers made the scoreboard pressure ultimately work in their favour.
With 29 needed off the final over, RCB's win was sealed when Josh Hazlewood bowled two dot balls in a row. Shashank Singh struck a valiant 61 not out off 30 balls, hitting six sixes and three fours, but his effort came far too late as Punjab Kings finished on 184/7.
After Josh Hazlewood provided the first breakthrough, Krunal Pandya stifled Punjab in the middle overs with sensational figures of 2/17 in four overs, including 12 dot balls, but it was Romario Shepherd's dismissal of PBKS' gun captain Shreyas Iyer that finally indicated which way the game was headed.
All it took was an innocuous delivery outside off to see the back of the most dangerous batter in the final as Iyer, coming off a terrific knock in Qualifier 2, edged it behind off Shepherd and walked back with his head dropped.
Josh Inglis (39 off 23 balls) made every opportunity count when it came to hitting towards midwicket but Pandya had him caught at long-on in the 13th over.
Desperate to strike early, RCB needed something special and Phil Salt produced a brilliant effort in the deep when Priyansh Arya (24) lifted the ball off Hazlewood in the fifth over.
Salt made a dash from deep square leg to his right and took the catch reverse cupped and threw the ball up in the air as he hurtled past the ropes. He recovered quickly to get inside the field and take a stunning catch.
Punjab's impact sub Prabhsimran Singh (26 off 22 balls) succumbed to pressure even as his side made 52/1 in the Powerplay.
Bhuvneshwar shut the doors on Punjab when he dismissed Nehal Wadhera (15) and Marcus Stoinis (6) in a span of three deliveries in the 17th over and thereon, RCB's triumph was only a formality.
Earlier, pacers Arshdeep Singh and Kyle Jamieson picked three wickets each to help Punjab Kings restrict Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a below-par 190/9 in the IPL 2025 Final, in Ahmedabad, on Tuesday.
After struggling in his first spell, Arshdeep bounced back with three wickets in the 20th over while conceding just three runs as RCB lost their way at the end, losing five wickets for 58 runs in the last five overs.
The left-arm pacer dismissed Romario Shepherd (17), Krunal Pandya (4) and Bhuvneshwar Kumar (1) in the last over, to finish with 3/40, while Jamieson claimed 3/48 to keep the RCB batters in check on a good pitch at the Narendra Modi stadium.
Azmatullah Omarzai, Yuzvendra Chahal and Vijaykumar Vyshak did a good job in the middle overs, taking a wicket each.
Virat Kohli was the top-scorer for RCB with a sedate knock of 43 from 35 balls at a strike rate of 122.85 as he failed to push on in the middle overs.
Kohli managed to hit just three boundaries in his knock before he top edged the pull shot and was caught by Omarzai, who took a fine running catch off his own bowling, in the 15th over.
Electing to bowl, Kyle Jamieson struck early with the wicket of RCB opener Phil Salt for 16 in the second over.
Salt gave RCB a positive start, hitting pacer Arshdeep Singh for a boundary and a six in the first over before he was dismissed by Jamieson, caught by Shreyas Iyer at mid-on.
His early dismissal was a major setback for RCB, who were restricted to 55 for one in six overs in the Powerplay, managing just five fours and a six.
No 3 Mayank Agarwal showed intent as he lofted Arshdeep Singh for a six straight down the ground and then cut Jamieson for a boundary through point.
However, Agarwal didn't last long as he swept Yuzvendra Chahal straight into the hands of deep square leg to fall for 24 from 18 balls in the seventh over. This is the seventh time that Agarwal was dismissed by Chahal in 46 balls faced overall.
Captain Rajat Patidar looked to be aggressive in the middle overs as he lofted Chahal for a six over long-on in the ninth over before he fell to Jamieson, trapped leg before wicket for 26.
Punjab's bowlers did well to chip away at the wickets at regular intervals, not allowing RCB to build partnerships.
Liam Livingstone stroked 25 from 15 balls before he was trapped leg before wicket by a full toss from Kyle Jamieson, who took 3/48 after conceding 23 runs in his final over -- including three sixes.
Jitesh Sharma helped RCB break the shackles with a quickfire 24 from 10 balls, with two sixes and as many fours. But he was dismissed by pacer Vijaykumar Vyshak, bowled off an inside edge in the 18th over.
Arshdeep ended the innings in fine style for Punjab Kings with a triple strike. Shepherd fell leg before wicket and two balls later Krunal was caught at long-on as he failed to time the lofted shot. Bhuvneshwar perished off the last ball as he miscued the full toss straight to Priyansh Arya at long-on.
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