Blitz Bureau
NEW DELHI: A million emotions were running amuck at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on June 3 as the IPL team Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) lifted the trophy for the first time in 18 years of the tournament.
Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma embraced her husband, the senior RCB player, and modern batting legend Virat Kohli as jitters in the stadium stretched from the pitch to the last row in the stands. After breaking down on field, Virat ran over to his wife, as he hugged her with tears streaming down his face. When it all kicked in, the emotions erupted for him akin to Italy’s Mount Etna volcano.
Anushka hugged and congratulated her husband. The shutters of the cameras stationed at the stadium went all gun-blazing to capture the moment between the couple, a moment that will put its signature along the dotted line of the history of India’s pop-culture, in years to come.
For Virat, the moment came a few weeks after he announced his retirement from Test cricket. One can only imagine the sense of accomplishment that must be running through Kohli’s mind at the moment.
Over the years, RCB has cultivated a loyal fanbase that has stood by the team, game after game, and season after season. With the maiden win coming after almost two decades, it has paid off enormously for them.
Incidentally, Anushka and IPL share the debut year. While the first season of IPL took place in the summer of 2008, Anushka made her debut roughly six months later with ‘Rab Ne Bana Di Jodi’ opposite Bollywood megastar Shah Rukh Khan, whose Kolkata Knight Riders were the defending champions of IPL 2025.
Earlier in March, Team India won the Champions Trophy with Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli forming the backbone of the team. It was India’s third title win, and Virat’s second title win as a part of the team after its 2013 edition.
Nearly a year ago, India, again with Virat and Rohit as senior players, won the ICC T20 World Cup in Barbados as the team snatched the victory from the jaws of South Africa.
