Kohli, bowlers lead RCB to second straight IPL title

It took them 18 years to win their first title, but Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) took no time in becoming only the third team to successfully defend it.

Their seam bowlers made superb use of a slightly sticky surface after Rajat Patidar won the toss, restricting the Gujarat Titans (GT), who were in their third final in five years of their existence, to 155, the exact same score RCB managed in the league match against the seam team in the same ground on the same pitch No. 6 bang in the middle of the square.

Josh Hazlewood, who has never lost a T20 or ODI final, set the tone with the wicket of Shubman Gill in his first over.

Bhuvneshwar Kumar momentarily reclaimed the purple cap with two wickets, and Rasikh Salam capped off his best IPL with three to take his tally for the year to 19.

Last final’s Player of the match, Krunal Pandya, who won his fifth IPL final out of five, also chipped in with the big wicket of Jos Buttler in his analysis of 4-0-23-1.

He was now behind only Rohit Sharma and Ambati Rayudu on titles.

Only three out of 26 scores under 190 in a full match had been defended successfully this IPL.

With the ball still nibbling around, the best attack in the tournament would have thought they had a chance, but amid falling wickets, Virat Kohli chose this final to hit his fastest IPL fifty and his highest playoff score, leading a five-wicket win with two overs to spare. (ESPNcricinfo)