Get rid of all the memes. Every joke. After 18 years of the Indian Premier League, RCB has finally won the championship. The Royal Challengers Bengaluru finally won their first IPL game after a protracted, painful, and agonizing wait for it by defending 190 against a strong Punjab Kings team. By taking 2/17 in four overs, Krunal Pandya's outstanding performance shattered the PBKS batsmen and let the legendary Virat Kohli experience the sensation of owning every prestigious trophy in his collection. Prior to this, Kohli had won the World Cup, the Champions Trophy, and the World T20. As an IPL champion, he will now awaken on June 4, 2025.

Legends have come and gone for RCB. Despite their best efforts, Rahul Dravid, Anil Kumble, Daniel Vettori, and even Kohli himself were unable to lead RCB to victory. At the age of 32, Rajat Patidar surpassed them all in his first year as captain, securing his position in RCB history.

RCB deserves all the accolades for successfully defending a total 10 runs short of a 200-run target, which has been easily attainable at a location with little exertion. The goal did not seem intimidating at all considering the opening that Prabhsimran Singh and Priyansh Arya gave Punjab. However, after Patidar threw the dice on his spinners, things started to fall apart. With Krunal leading the charge, PBKS fell from 72/1 in the ninth over to 98/4 in under four overs. Thanks to Shashank Singh's outstanding half-century, which sadly came a little too late for PBKS, they were able to finish at 184, just six runs short of that mark.

Priyanash and Prabhsimran, the opening pair for the Punjab Kings, took advantage of errant deliveries and started their chase with assurance. Prabhsimran finished off the first over from Bhuvneshwar Kumar with a towering six, and Arya established the tone with a boundary off it. Dayal's second over was costly, as it gave up runs with a leg-bye four and a fortunate boundary. The third over saw Josh Hazlewood make things tighter, but PBKS still had the momentum. The run rate was kept under control by Bhuvneshwar's economical fourth over, while the Aussie pacer struck in the fifth over, dismissing Arya. Inglis infused aggression into the sixth over with a six, but RCB wasted a review by the conclusion of the powerplay.

To change the tide, RCB turned to spin, with Krunal producing a stingy seventh over to keep PBKS at bay. After Suyash Sharma was introduced, Inglis and Prabhsimran each struck a six, breaking free from him. But Krunal retaliated by dismissing Prabhsimran, and the pressure increased when Romario Shepherd dealt a huge blow, taking out Shreyas Iyer. In Shepherd's twelfth over, Inglis kept PBKS alive by hitting another six off of a short pitch. When Krunal struck Inglis in the 12.1st over, caught by Liam Livingstone at long-on, the match swung in RCB's favor.

Although Nehal Wadhera and Shashank Singh, the final recognized batting duo for PBKS, were the center of attention, they didn't do much harm despite a few ferocious hits. The 17th over, bowled by Bhuvneshwar, was going to be make or break for Punjab as the necessary run rate approached 16 an over. With Nehal and Marcus Stoinis dying in just three deliveries, it was a break. The supporters of RCB shared their conviction. To be close to the boundary, even the renowned AB de Villiers hurried out of the commentary booth.

A tale of the opening inning

The experienced Kohli headed the RCB's batting lineup, which had trouble gaining momentum against a well-disciplined Punjab Kings attack. Phil Salt's aggressive start to the innings saw him race to 13/0 by hitting a six and a four off Arshdeep Singh in the first over. Salt was dismissed for 16 in the second over, though, as Kyle Jamieson struck early for Punjab.

By the conclusion of the powerplay, Kohli and Mayank Agarwal had stabilized the ship and led RCB to 59/1. Agarwal hit off Vijaykumar Vyshak with an aerial cover drive and played with great fluency, discovering limits with ease. But Agarwal was taken out by Yuzvendra Chahal, who flipped the script. With a strike rate of 123.08, Kohli played an anchor role but found it difficult to pick up speed, hitting just three boundaries. Rajat Patidar, the captain of RCB, gave the innings some impetus with a six off Chahal, but Jamieson's slow yorker put an end to his aggressive intentions. Kohli's hopes were further dashed when Azmatullah Omarzai bowled him out with a well-aimed short ball that Kohli top-edged.

As Liam Livingstone and Jitesh Sharma failed to take advantage of their starts, the middle order faltered. With two sixes off Jamieson, one of which was a beautiful scoop over the keeper, Jitesh momentarily raised hopes, but his departure in the 18th over left RCB at 171/6. Romario Shepherd's late cameo (four and six in the 19th over) kept RCB's hopes of surpassing 200 alive, but Arshdeep Singh's outstanding last over completely changed the game.

Despite a pricey night the night before, Arshdeep made up for it by bowling a game-decisive 20th over. He finished with three wickets after taking out the hazardous Shepherd on the second ball, then Krunal Pandya two balls later, and Bhuvneshwar Kumar on the last ball.

Read Also: Virat Kohli Ranks Test Cricket Above IPL Glory, Says RCB Title Still ‘Five Levels Below’

Get the latest Bollywood entertainment news, trending celebrity news, latest celebrity news, new movie reviews, latest entertainment news, latest Bollywood news, and Bollywood celebrity fashion & style updates!

HOW DID YOU LIKE THIS ARTICLE? CHOOSE YOUR EMOTICON!