IPL 2025 Final, RCB vs PBKS Match Live Score: Punjab Kings & Royal Challengers Bengaluru brace for maiden IPL trophy
RCB vs PBKS Live Score, IPL Final: The wait is almost over to find out who will crowned IPL champions for the 2025 chapter. Will it be 'ee saala cup namde' for Bengaluru or 'sarpanch sahab' scripting history for Punjab? A new champion is guaranteed. After 17 seasons of heartbreak, near-misses, and "what ifs," either Royal Challengers Bengaluru or Punjab Kings will finally lay their hands on the coveted IPL trophy when they face off in the 2025 final at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad tonight.Both franchises carry years of emotional baggage. RCB have made it to the final thrice before — in 2009, 2011, and 2016 — only to fall short each time. Punjab Kings (formerly Kings XI Punjab) made their lone final appearance in 2014, losing to Kolkata Knight Riders. The scars have lingered, but so has the hunger.
RCB vs PBKS: Road to the final RCB were the first to secure a place in the final. After finishing second in the league stage with 19 points from 14 matches, they defeated Punjab Kings comprehensively in Qualifier 1, chasing down the target with eight wickets in hand.Punjab, who had topped the table thanks to a superior net run rate (also 19 points), had to take the longer route. After stumbling in Qualifier 1, they bounced back with a gritty win over Mumbai Indians in Qualifier 2 — a match that saw their skipper Shreyas Iyer play one of the innings of the tournament: an unbeaten 87 off 41 balls.
PBKS vs RCB IPL final: Key Performers RCB's success this season has revolved around two pillars: Virat Kohli and Josh Hazlewood. Kohli has been in vintage form, racking up 614 runs at an average of 55.82 and a strike rate of 146.53, including eight fifties. Hazlewood has spearheaded their bowling attack with 21 wickets in 11 matches, averaging 15.80.PBKS have had a captain's campaign to remember. Shreyas Iyer has led from the front with 603 runs, striking at 175.80 and averaging 54.82. On the bowling front, Arshdeep Singh has quietly gone about his job, picking 18 wickets in 16 games, providing crucial breakthroughs even under pressure.
RCB vs PBKS: Head-to-Head
In a rivalry as balanced as the final itself, RCB and PBKS have faced off 36 times in IPL history — with 18 wins each. This season, they've met thrice: Punjab took the first clash, while RCB won the reverse fixture and the all-important Qualifier 1.
Squads Royal Challengers Bengaluru:Philip Salt, Virat Kohli, Mayank Agarwal, Rajat Patidar (c), Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma (wk), Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal, Josh Hazlewood, Suyash Sharma, Rasikh Dar Salam, Manoj Bhandage, Tim Seifert, Swapnil Singh, Tim David, Blessing Muzarabani, Nuwan Thushara, Mohit Rathee, Swastik Chikara, Abhinandan SinghPunjab Kings:Priyansh Arya, Prabhsimran Singh, Josh Inglis (wk), Shreyas Iyer (c), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Azmatullah Omarzai, Kyle Jamieson, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal, Harpreet Brar, Suryansh Shedge, Praveen Dubey, Xavier Bartlett, Vishnu Vinod, Yash Thakur, Aaron Hardie, Kuldeep Sen, Mitchell Owen, Harnoor Singh, Musheer Khan, Pyla Avinash Show more
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