IPL finally delivers for King Kohli after overcoming a conflict and ushering in a teenage star
AHMEDABAD, India (AP) — Virat Kohli shed tears. Of joy. At last.
Cricket's biggest star, known as 'King Kohli' by his 300 million-plus followers on social media, was there in the infancy of the Indian Premier League in 2008 and had to wait 18 seasons to clinch the title with Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
After the six-wicket win over Punjab Kings on Tuesday night to end a dramatic, disrupted season for the world's richest franchise cricket league, Kohli slumped to his knees and cried. He retired from test cricket during the season, leaving his focus on the Twenty20 format at the IPL.
'I have given everything to this franchise for the last 18 years,' the 36-year-old star batter said. 'I never thought this moment would come.'
Young star emerges
The 14-year-old Vaibhav Suryavanshi became an instant hit and set all kinds of records when he made his century. With some of India's biggest stars nearing retirement, he's being touted as the next big thing.
A final scene
Narendra Modi Stadium was decked in India's national colors while players from Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings went about their pre-match rituals. Both teams went into the decider aiming to win their first IPL title.
Fighter jets roared across the evening sky, leaving tricolor vapor lingering. Later, the closing ceremony was a celebration of India's armed forces.
This final — on a weekday — was originally scheduled for May 25, and meant to be played in Kolkata. But the league was suspended for a week because of the cross-border tensions between India and Pakistan.
In the past, the IPL has moved to South Africa and the United Arab Emirates because of national elections or restrictions imposed to during the COVID-19 pandemic. The suspension due to a border conflict was unprecedented.
Border conflict
The Punjab Kings-Delhi Capitals game on May 8 was abandoned midway, and squads and broadcast crew traveled by train from Dharamsala to Delhi. Foreign players and their families flew out immediately for their safety. IPL is the biggest money spinner in cricket – one of the biggest properties in world sport – and the major stakeholders were determined for the show to go on.
IPL's resumption was never in question once the cross-border tensions eased. The new schedule was drawn up — six venues were short-listed and the final moved from Kolkata to Ahmedabad.
Perhaps the biggest takeaway was the swift return of most of the contracted foreign players, especially for teams still in knockout contention. In some situations, where replacements were sought, the Board of Control for Cricket in India allowed teams to hire players short-term.
Sri Lanka's Kusal Mendis, for example, got out of his PSL contract with Quetta Gladiators and signed up with Gujarat Titans for the remainder of the season.
The big knocks
While the league suspension will go down in history, the season will be memorable for some scintillating cricket — 200-plus totals were posted a record 52 times in 74 matches this season. The previous best was 41 in IPL 2024.
Additionally, 200-plus was chased down on nine occasions. 2024 runners-up Sunrisers Hyderabad, who finished sixth this season scored the season's highest against Rajasthan Royals — 286-6. It also posted the highest successful run-chase, scoring 247-2 in reply to Punjab's 245-6.
Bengaluru, which arguably boasts of the most passionate supporters in the IPL, winning its maiden IPL title was perhaps a marker of how well the season reemerged after the forced suspension.
What's next for India?
During the break, Indian cricket also took a giant leap toward its future. Stalwarts Kohli and Rohit Sharma had walked away from test cricket within six days even as the Indian selectors looked ahead to the tour of England which begins this month.
Shubman Gill is the new test skipper and will lead India into a whole new era. Sai Sudharsan, the highest run-getter of IPL 2025 with 759 runs in 15 games, has also been picked in India's test squad for England.
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AP cricket: https://apnews.com/hub/cricket
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