Ahead of the final, Australia women’s team captain Alyssa Healy points out that although both teams will feel the heat, RCB may be a bit more under pressure purely because of their history. RCB have a fan base like no other IPL teams, with a reach of over 20 million followers on Instagram. Besides, the fact that they have lost three IPL finals before tonight has only hyped up the final all the more.

“Neither team has obviously never won before. There’s going to be a little bit of panic at some point out there. RCB would really want to win, having come so close in the past. I feel like all the pressure is on RCB to win this title. Especially with the way they have shaped up all the year. But Punjab are just going to come along and steal it from them,” Healy said on the LiSTNR Sport podcast.

Will the stars finally allign for RCB and Virat Kohli?

And when there’s RCB, how can there not be a mention of Virat Kohli. Few players transcend boundaries and become bigger than the sport itself. Kohli is one such individual. In fact, the narrative over the last few years has been more about him than RCB. As the face of the franchise, the franchise, the fans and even former cricketers want Kohli to win the IPL. He won the T20 World Cup last year in the West Indies and the Champions Trophy a few months back. Kohli took home the Orange Cap twice – with 973 runs in 2016 and 741 runs last year. But they weren’t enough. Even this year, he has pummelled 614 runs. However, with 2025 being the year of first timers, can Kohli end his and the franchise’s 18-year jinx? Healy won’t mind seeing that happen, but at the same time, reminds that, like always, pressure will be on Kohli.

“I feel sorry for him. Every time they haven’t won, it’s like his fault. It’s not per se. But he is the face of the organisation, and it’s like ‘Oh, Virat has lost it again’. It’s not so much for RCB, but ‘Virat still hasn’t won the IPL trophy’. So the pressure is all on him. And that side is going to rely a lot on Virat Kohli to get RCB to that trophy,” she added.