The stage is set in Ahmedabad. The sky’s heavy, the crowd electric, and for fans like Mohammed Musif, this isn’t just another IPL final—it’s a long-awaited dream. Clad in a Virat Kohli Test jersey outside the Narendra Modi Stadium, Musif carries hope on his sleeve. “RCB must win tomorrow,” he says. He’s bringing his two sons and now needs to buy two more jerseys. “I don’t know when I’ll see Kohli here again.”
Inside, as the teams gear up for the final, RCB captain Rajat Patidar is doing his best to stay focused. Despite leading the team, most questions at the pre-match presser revolved around Kohli. Patidar, composed and respectful, shrugged off the attention. “It’s not frustrating. He’s earned it. We’ll just do our best tomorrow,” he said.
Asked about the pressure from fans, he kept it simple: “Expectations are always there. I try to focus on what’s in my control.”
Kohli remains the heartbeat of RCB. With 614 runs this season, he’s looked sharper than ever. In Qualifier 1, he played like a man possessed—hungry, aggressive, and cinematic in his strokeplay. RCB fans believe this year, the curse could finally break.
But standing in the way is a man who doesn’t show much—Shreyas Iyer. If Kohli is fire, Iyer is ice. In Sunday’s semi-final, Iyer anchored a fierce chase, didn’t celebrate milestones, and even fired up a teammate for a poor run-out. “Job’s half done,” he said after the win. “We’ve got to come back and finish it.”
Iyer lives for big matches. His calm exterior hides a locked-in mindset. “Being in the zone starts in the warm-up. Once I stepped on the field, it was all about the plan—how I’d rally my players, how I’d pace my innings,” he said.
He admitted he’s barely slept since that knock but aims to recharge before the final. PBKS have momentum, but RCB are well rested, having trained under the Ahmedabad lights on Monday.
Fire meets ice tonight. Two captains, two styles, one prize. And maybe—just maybe—rain.
