Why Royal Challengers Bengaluru deserve to be IPL champions

RCB have grown into a champion side with several matchwinners

Last updated: June 02, 2025 | 17:27

2 MIN READ

Virat Kohli has been the talismanic player for Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

AFP

The Royal Challengers Bengaluru are a step away from winning the Indian Premier League. That makes me nervous. Excited and hopeful too. Every RCB fan would be. You can’t blame them. Three trips to the final have ended in heartbreaks. Will they be lucky the fourth time? I hope so.

Bengaluru have always been strong contenders. A team dripping with star power and talent. Yet, somehow, the IPL trophy remained out of reach. Back when Vijay Mallya ran the show, RCB wallowed in glitz and glamour. Bollywood star and Bengaluru girl Deepika Padukone added to the sparkle. Mallya might be gone, but the glam never left RCB.

Also Read: How RCB cracked the code and end nine-year wait to march into IPL final

Did the glam dull RCB’s competitive fervour? It seems so. Then came the legend — Virat Kohli. He turned RCB into serious contenders. Every season, our hearts soared… only to be crushed again. But this season? It is different.

RCB are on fire. Hungry. Relentless. The demolition of Punjab Kings in the first qualifier underlined their will to win. Punjab bounced back, knocking out Mumbai Indians to get another shot at Bengaluru. Can they turn the tables on RCB? Tuesday is the ultimate showdown.

Also Read: IPL 2021: RCB’s Virat Kohli reprimanded for code of conduct breach

Punjab may have regained strength and morale, but Bengaluru are ready for them. RCB aren’t riding solo on superstar Kohli anymore. They are not reliant on imports either. This team’s got depth. Captain Rajat Patidar, Krunal Pandya, Phil Salt, Romario Shepherd, Devdutt Padikkal, and Jitesh Sharma have all stepped up with game-winning performances. Josh Hazlewood leads the bowling challenge, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Krunal Pandya, Suyash Sharma, and Yash Dayal have delivered the goods in crunch situations.

Here’s a bunch of players who have pulled together, and the results are evident. When the chips are down, players have stood up to fashion victories. That’s the mark of champions.

Also Read: Rishabh Pant’s each run costs Rs1 million, Jofra Archer’s wicket Rs11.36 million in IPL 2025

Bengaluru are ready for the final. Ready for Punjab. Ready to lift the IPL trophy. After 17 tries. It’s never too late for a fairytale ending.

The streets of Bengaluru’s MG Road better be ready for a ticker-tape parade. I want to be there.

Also Read: Watch: Virat Kohli and Anushka Sharma explore Dubai in 'Ready For a Surprise' campaign

Also Read: Virat Kohli becomes first player to score 9,000 T20 runs for a single franchise

Shyam A. KrishnaActing Editor

Shyam A. Krishna has been slicing and dicing news for nearly 40 years and is in no mood to slow down. As Acting Editor, he runs the newsroom — digital and print. Sports was the passion that ignited his career, and he now writes about just about everything: news, business, sports, health, travel, and entertainment. Even cooking! You might have spotted him at COP28, the Arabian Travel Market, the Dubai World Cup racing, the T20 World Cup cricket, the Dubai tennis and Abu Dhabi Formula One motor racing. Before all that, the newsroom was (and still is) his home turf. As Night Editor, he designed and produced pages for several years before focusing on Opinion pieces. The transition from Opinion Editor to Senior Associate Editor signalled a return to writing — from special reports and blogs to features. And when he’s not chasing stories or deadlines, Shyam is probably making travel plans or baking something.