The moment every cricket fan has been waiting for so many years has finally happened. The widely popular IPL team, Royal Challengers Bengaluru, has finally been able to win the IPL trophy. In its 18th edition, the team from South defeated Shreyas Iyer’s Punjab Kings by a margin of mere 6 runs to lift the trophy.
It’s been a long wait. For the owners, for the management. But the wait has been harder for Virat Kohli. The Delhi-born superstar has been a part of RCB right from the start. The Bengaluru-based franchise acquired Kohli’s services for INR 12 lakh from the U-19 Player Draft in the inaugural season in 2008. The young prodigy, fresh from leading India to a U-19 World Cup victory, started his IPL career with a decent salary that remained unchanged for his first three seasons (2008-2010).
The Initial Phase
The first couple of seasons were quite average for Kohli. Although he had shown the world cricket what he is capable of, he wasn’t able to set the IPL stage on fire. He managed to get only 718 runs in the first three seasons of the Indian Premier League.
In 2011, when the mega auction happened, Virat Kohli was retained by the RCB management. And boy, he did not disappoint the RCB owners. Kohli amassed 557 runs, striking at 121.08 during the 2011 IPL season. With his exemplary performance, Virat Kohli took RCB to the final, where they faced MS Dhoni’s Chennai Super Kings. Although tipped to lift the cup, RCB crumbled under pressure and lost by 58 runs. And Virat Kohli experienced his first heartbreak.
The year was 2013. Virat Kohli was showing signs of being the next great thing in Indian cricket. The RCB management put all their faith into Virat Kohli by making him the skipper of the team. Virat was completely involved in building RCB into a winning team. His camaraderie with AB de Villiers and Chris Gayle, both on and off the field, was always the talking point of the IPL.
The Peak
During the 2013-17 season, Virat Kohli smashed every possible bowler. Right from Ben Hilfenhaus to Lasith Malinga, there was no bowler that Virat hadn’t dominated. But he showed god-like batting prowess during the 2016 IPL season. During the 2106 IPL season, Virat managed to do what no other IPL player has managed to do till date. The right-hander amassed 973 runs at an astonishing average of 81.08 and striking at an impressive 152.03. This was just something magical.
During the 2016 IPL season, Virat smashed 4 centuries. Something that is unheard of in a T20 tournament. And it was not just the individual records; Virat Kohli, through his match-winning abilities, took RCB to their third IPL final. With Virat being in his purple patch, everyone thought this was the year for RCB. But David Warner and his Sunrisers Hyderabad had different plans. The Orange Army snatched victory from the jaws of defeat to give SRH their first-ever title.
The 2016 IPL final defeat broke Virat Kohli. We witnessed the man at a loss for words. He was quoted as saying, “We are proud of the way we played as a team. This was for the people of Bangalore. Even when we had the worst seasons, they were there for us. I was gutted; we couldn’t cross the line.”
After the 2016 IPL final, we saw the Royal Challengers Bangalore play consistent cricket, but they were not able to reach the IPL finals. The team managed to reach the IPL playoffs four times, but they were not able to breach the finals hurdle.
During this time, Virat gave it his all with the bat. The right-hander scored over 3800 runs for the team, winning countless matches with his batting and aggressive captaincy. But he couldn’t quite get over the line.
The Legend
And finally, in 2022, Virat Kohli relinquished his IPL captaincy. The former Team India skipper stated, “In every game, there were expectations from me as a batter,” and constant scrutiny of my captaincy or batting felt unrelenting. I was exposed to it 24/7, and it got too much in the end”.
Although Virat, the captain, had given up his captaincy, Virat the batter hadn’t forgotten his responsibilities towards his team. The RCB legend garnered over 1700 runs during this period. With everyone doubting his run-scoring abilities, Virat shut all his critics by scoring over 700 runs during the 2024 IPL season and winning the Orange Cap.
With a successful IPL season behind him, Virat Kohli was hunting for success in the white ball format for Team India. Under the able leadership of Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli, and Team India delivered two massive successes in the span of just 9 months. The Men in Blue won the World T20 held in the West Indies and the USA in June and the 2025 Champions Trophy held in Pakistan and Dubai in February.
The 2025 IPL season marked a new beginning for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru. With a new coach ( Andy Flower), batting coach and mentor ( Dinesh Karthik) and a new skipper (Rajat Patidar), RCB looked very different.
The team who were always considered a perennial underachiever looked like champions right from the onset. The attacking yet conservative approach while batting and getting matchups into attack while bowling helped them secure the second position in the IPL points table.
The team faced Punjab Kings in the first Qualifier, destroying them by getting them all out in just 101 runs. The Men in Red and Golden chased down the target very easily, winning by 8 wickets. With the comfortable win, Royal Challengers Bengaluru secured their place in the 4th IPL final.
The final was nothing short of Absolute Cinema. Punjab Kings, who had faced defeat from RCB in the first Qualifier, had another shot at redemption. But seemed like the cricket gods were with RCB. After 18 years of longing and multiple heartbreaks, the franchisee from Bengaluru was finally able to clinch the IPL 2025 trophy.
Kohli was absolutely delighted with the win and called it one of the best moments of his career. In the post-match presentation ceremony, Virat stated, “You know, this moment is right up there with the best moments I’ve had in my career”.
Conclusion
With the IPL 2025 trophy in his cabinet, Virat Kohli has finally managed to complete cricket. The Team India legend has managed to win every possible ICC tournament (2011 ODI World Cup, 2024 World T20, ICC Test Championship Mace and 2025 Champions Trophy) and the biggest prize in T20 cricket.
We, at God of Sports, are brimming with joy and pride after RCB’s emphatic win and wish the franchise and Virat Kohli the best for the future. Ee sala cup namdu, finally!!!
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