Ahmedabad, June 4 (IANS) As the fireworks lit up the Ahmedabad sky and tears rolled down Virat Kohli’s face, two of Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s senior-most pacers — Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar — stood tall, reflecting on a historic night that ended RCB’s 18-year wait for an IPL trophy.

“It means everything to Kohli,” Hazlewood said after the final. “To be there from the start and get the result tonight will bring out a lot of emotion.”

The Australian fast bowler, who returned to RCB this season after injury layoffs, hailed the tactical execution from the bowling unit. “I think 190 was a good score, the wicket was up and down. It may have gotten better in the second innings. Everyone chipped in,” he added. “Coming back? Absolutely, won’t get a better experience than this.”

Bhuvneshwar Kumar, the silent workhorse in the final overs, underlined the importance of reading the surface early.

“We knew the wicket would not be easy, and 190 would not be easy. It was 10 more than we thought,” he said, before praising the tactical brilliance of Krunal Pandya, whose 4-0-17-2 spell in the middle overs broke Punjab’s momentum.

“His spell changed the scenario for us. Change of pace was not easy, but we thought we would not over-use it.”

In a night that will be remembered for years, RCB defended 190 against Punjab Kings to script a stunning six-run victory and lift the IPL 2025 title—their first ever.

Batting first after being put in, RCB rode on gritty knocks from Virat Kohli (43), Mayank Agarwal, and Liam Livingstone, while Jitesh Sharma and Romario Shepherd added the finishing touches. Despite Arshdeep Singh’s triple-wicket final over (3/40) and Kyle Jamieson’s three-wicket haul (3/48), RCB posted a fighting 190/9.

Punjab began the chase steadily through Prabhsimran Singh and Josh Inglis, but Krunal Pandya’s double strike dismantled their top order. From 70/1, they crashed to 88/4, with Shreyas Iyer falling for one run. Late cameos from Nehal Wadhera and Shashank Singh (61 not out) weren’t enough as Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar held firm at the death.

–IANS

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