 "Krunal Pandya picked up two crucial wickets as RCB made a comeback. Image: Reuters")
Royal Challengers Bengaluru won their maiden title in the IPL 2025 final against Punjab Kings at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. A lot of credit should go to Krunal Pandya, who bowled a brilliant spell in the high-stakes clash. The left-arm spinner helped RCB make a comeback and eventually beat Punjab Kings by 6 runs. He was named the Player of the Match for his magical spell of 4-0-17-2.
Krunal Pandya helps RCB make a comeback
Chasing 191 to win their first-ever IPL trophy, Punjab Kings were off to a solid start. Their openers Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh added 43 runs in quick time. Arya scored 24 off 19 balls before getting caught near the ropes off Josh Hazlewood’s bowling. Prabhsimran kept the momentum going with a couple of sixes.
But Krunal Pandya changed the game for RCB with two big wickets. First, he got Prabhsimran Singh out for 26, caught by Bhuvneshwar Kumar. Then, in his final over, he dismissed Josh Inglis, who was looking dangerous after scoring 39 off 23 balls. Inglis hit 4 sixes, but Krunal got him caught by Liam Livingstone at deep mid-wicket.
RCB went on to win the final by 6 runs. This was Krunal Pandya’s second POTM award in an IPL final. Earlier, he won one with the Mumbai Indians in 2017.
**"**When we batted, we realised the slower you bowl the better it is. In this format, you need guts to do it. I just backed myself, thought I’ll vary my pace and keep it on the slower side more often. My biggest strength has been to learn what the situation requires. I knew I had to be brave to get wickets tonight. Thought I’d do that by bowling slow. If you’d have bowled quick, it’d have been a good wicket. But if you mixed it up it was tougher. Pitch actually got easier in the second innings. Have enjoyed my time with RCB so far, I said on day one I wanted to win. I told Hardik too that the Pandya household will have nine trophies in 11 years."