‘RCB All the Way': Rishi Sunak's Personal Connect Lights Up IPL Final
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After an 18-year wait, RCB finally lifted the IPL trophy, beating Punjab Kings in a thrilling match.
Former UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak and his wife, Akshata Murty were spotted cheering enthusiastically for Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) during the IPL 2025 final held at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on Tuesday. After an 18-year wait, RCB finally lifted the IPL trophy by beating Punjab Kings in a thrilling match.
Before the match, he publicly thrown his support behind Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), calling the team 'his own" thanks to strong family ties. 'I'm married into a Bangalore family, so RCB is my team," Sunak said in an interview with TimesofIndia.com. He fondly recalled proposing to his wife Akshata Murty in Kannada — a language he confessed he hadn't quite mastered.
Reminiscing further, Sunak said, 'We've been to RCB matches together years ago, and I even cheered for them from Downing Street. Last season's run was especially exciting."
'I'm a massive Virat Kohli fan. He's a total legend," Sunak said fondly and also mentioned that he was gifted a signed bat by India's External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar as a Diwali present. He also expressed hope for strong performances from RCB's English players, Phil Salt and Liam Livingstone. And just as he hoped, RCB brought the cup home.
Sunak also spoke about the significance of cricket's return to the Olympics after 100 years and the role India and the IPL have played in transforming the sport. In an interview with the Times of India, he said, 'The IPL has transformed cricket. Now, every cricketer everywhere wants to play in the IPL at some point in their career."
He also highlighted how the IPL has helped players improve, mentioning England's Jacob Bethell, who impressed him during a recent ODI between England and West Indies. 'The IPL has improved him as a cricket player," Sunak noted. He added that the IPL has been great for women's cricket too, encouraging more girls to take up the sport.
Sunak believes India's growing global influence is why cricket is back in the Olympics after such a long break.
'It's also a sign of the influence that India now has in the 21st century. India's passions, India's tastes now have a global impact for which cricket is back in the Olympics for the first time in 100 years," he said.
Akshata Murty also shared her love for cricket, recalling her childhood in Bangalore during the heyday of Rahul Dravid and Anil Kumble. She also spoke about how cricket helped build a bond between Rishi and her father, NR Narayana Murthy, Co-founder of Infosys.
'What cricket has done is help build a bond between Rishi and my father. Many years ago, when I first brought Rishi home, I was quite nervous. I'm an only daughter and my dad's quite strict but the two of them started having good conversations around cricket and I knew that's when it was going to work. So, for us, cricket is more than just a game," she said.
At the stadium, when RCB's batting concluded, Rishi Sunak spoke to interviewers with excitement. 'This is incredible, this is electric. This is my first time here, the crowd is incredible, I have never experienced cricket like this," he said.
RCB won the final by just six runs. When it was clear they had won, Virat Kohli couldn't hold back his tears. It showed how much he wanted this trophy. Although he had come close three times before, those hopes had ended in disappointment until now.
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