Picture Credit: X/IPL
Speaking exclusively on Kuhl Fans Match Centre Live on JioHotstar, JioStar expert Robin Uthappa shared his thoughts on RCB’s win and their entry into the TATA IPL 2025 final: “I'm ecstatic and I'm feeling just exactly like how Virat is feeling right now. Ecstatic, but I know there's one more to go. You can't take your eyes off the ball right now. If you look at the last five years, I reckon they've been the most consistent team, but also the team that has looked the most dangerous as well. They've actually turned up, they’ve brought the heat, and they've been there and thereabouts — but just something has been evading that first trophy for them. Maybe it's befitting that in the 18th year, after 18 years of waiting for number 18 as well, they will finally win it this year.”
They found a way to gel together as a unit: AB de Villiers on RCB
JioStar expert AB de Villiers also spoke about RCB’s journey and their potential to win the title: “I think 2011 was a really good chance to win the title. Everyone talks about the 2016 season, but let’s forget about the past. Where are RCB now? In another final — 2025. It's closer than you think and smaller than you think. So hopefully those little moments will go in RCB’s favour, come the 3rd of June. It was around the auction time when I felt like RCB really got the balance right this year. It's not a one-dimensional batting line-up, not a one-dimensional bowling line-up — there are options. I just loved the look of that squad when I saw it come out. They found a way to gel together as a unit. As you can see, all the players individually chipped in at times, and that is a sign of a healthy environment.”
RCB wicketkeeper-batter Phil Salt expressed his emotions on reaching the TATA IPL final and reflected on the game as he joined Kuhl Fans Match Centre Live on JioHotstar: “It’s a great feeling. When you put so much in through the group stages — everything you pour into the pot over a couple of months — and then with the restart as well, to get the reward of going to a final is a great feeling. I knew that it was very much a case of: bat well, we win the game. Myself and Virat were talking about almost playing it like a 50-over game — a 50-over tempo — and we’d get enough bad balls to score off.”
So pleased that he's back fit again for us: Phil Salt on Josh Hazlewood's return for RCB
Commenting on Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar’s contributions in the RCB vs PBKS match, Salt added: “Josh is such a key figure for us — not just with his bowling, because we know it's world-class and what he does time and again — but also as part of the bowling unit, that sort of calm head out there for everybody else to lean on. It's massive. And we've obviously got Bhuvi (Bhuvneshwar Kumar) as well doing the same job. So to have Josh back in the team and contributing to the bowling unit, making the observations he does, and then performing the way he did — that's almost the cherry on top. So pleased that he's back fit again for us.”
AB de Villiers further commented on Virat Kohli’s mindset and leadership in the RCB camp: “The first time I saw him on the screen for PBKS vs RCB game, was when he got out of the bus, and I just saw a lot of focus in that guy. That’s the typical kind of body language we’re so used to seeing. And what I love most about this is — he didn’t score runs today, but we still saw him right till the end, celebrating with the batters. The ultimate team man, and he looks very, very focused. Obviously, the job's not done yet, but I’m very excited to watch him play. I have no doubt in my mind he’s going to play a big hand in the final.”
Commenting on the upcoming Eliminator between MI and GT, JioStar expert Robin Uthappa backed the Mumbai Indians: “I'm going to back MI and say that they’re the ones who will go through to that final. I reckon their bowling has been working really well. They had an off game in the previous match against Punjab, but I don’t think that’s going to happen in a pressure eliminator, simply because they are so familiar with being under pressure. And when they're in that situation, they respond well. They know what it takes to win from that kind of a chase.”
(With Inputs from Press Release)
