Kohli leads Royal Challengers Bengaluru to second straight IPL title

AHMEDABAD: Virat Kohli struck an unbeaten 75 as Royal Challengers Bengaluru defeated Gujarat Titans by five wickets on Sunday to win their second consecutive Indian Premier League title.

Bengaluru first held Gujarat to 155-8 and then completed the chase with 12 balls remaining at the Narendra Modi Stadium. Kohli finished the match with a six, ending a 42-ball innings that included nine fours and three sixes. It was his fifth half-century of the season, and he was named player of the match.

Rajat Patidar's side had already topped the 10-team standings in the league phase, building on the momentum of last year's breakthrough title, which came at the 18th attempt. With this result, Patidar joined a select group of captains to win back-to-back IPL trophies, matching the achievements of M.S. Dhoni with Chennai Super Kings in 2010 and 2011 and Rohit Sharma with Mumbai Indians in 2019 and 2020.

Speaking after the win, Kohli said:

"Stuff you dream of. Thought of this moment many times, wanting to hit the winning run,"

He added:

Felt really relaxed coming in. The team we have givesconfidence to see any kind of situation through. Knew exactly what to do in the chase. Such is the demand (with) super young players pushing you to up the ante.

Kohli also said:

We knew what kind of ability we have in the group. And we just said one thing, 'If we stick to our cricket, if we execute our plans, we are the best team in the competition.'

Bengaluru make fast start in chase

Kohli and opener Venkatesh Iyer gave Bengaluru early control with a 62-run partnership. Iyer made 32 from 16 deliveries before Mohammed Siraj broke the stand, while Kagiso Rabada removed Devdutt Padikkal.

Rashid Khan then struck twice in the same over, dismissing Patidar for 15 and Krunal Pandya to revive Gujarat's hopes. However, Tim David contributed 24 and shared a 41-run stand with Kohli to steady the innings. After David's departure, Kohli remained in control and completed the chase alongside Jitesh Sharma.

The crowd at the Narendra Modi Stadium, described as the world's biggest cricket ground, officially numbered more than 90,000, with Kohli's number 18 shirt prominent in the stands.

Quick bowlers set up final win

Bengaluru's pace attack laid the foundation for victory after the team chose to field first. Rasikh Salam returned figures of 3-27, while Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar took two wickets each in a disciplined bowling display.

Hazlewood dismissed Gujarat captain Shubman Gill for 10, with Patidar taking a running catch, and Kumar then removed Sai Sudharsan for 12. Both Gill and Sudharsan had entered the final in contention for the Orange Cap, but the season's top run-scorer was Rajasthan Royals' 15-year-old Vaibhav Sooryavanshi with 776 runs. Gill finished with 732, Sudharsan with 722, and Kohli was fourth with 675, including one century.

Nishant Sindhu made 20 and Jos Buttler tried to rebuild, but Gujarat struggled to score freely. Salam dismissed Sindhu, and Krunal Pandya had Buttler stumped for 19 as Gujarat slipped to 73-4 in 12.1 overs.

Gujarat batting coach Matthew Hayden said:

"We have apex predators but couldn't get going in the powerplay,"

He added:

"I thought it was an incredible bowling performance by RCB."

Washington Sundar offered the main resistance for Gujarat with an unbeaten 50, reaching the landmark in the 20th over, but the innings was not enough to prevent defeat. Gujarat finished runners-up for the second time in three finals. Their only IPL title came in their debut season in 2022.