Virat Kohli was "overcome with emotion" at the moment Royal Challengers Bengaluru won their maiden IPL title in their 18th attempt, saying he had given the team "my youth, my prime and my experience" over the last two decades.
Kohli is the only player to have played for one team in all 18 IPL seasons. He was seen on his knees, head bowed to the turf, and in tears when RCB completed their six-run victory in the IPL 2025 final against Punjab Kings in Ahmedabad on Tuesday. There were many more emotional moments, with his RCB team-mates, his wife Anushka Sharma, and his former team-mates AB de Villiers and Chris Gayle.
"This win is as much for the fans as it is for the team," Kohli said after the game. "It's been 18 long years. I've given this team my youth, my prime and my experience. I've tried to win this every season when I come, give it everything I have. To have this moment is an unbelievable feeling.
"I never thought this day would come. I was overcome with emotion as soon as the last ball was bowled. This means so much to me. I've given each and every ounce of my energy to this team. To have finally won the IPL is an amazing feeling."
Kohli said the IPL triumph is "right up there" with all his other triumphs, while professing his love for Bengaluru and the franchise that "stood behind me". The IPL title caps a remarkable 12 months for Kohli during which he's won the 2024 T20 World Cup and the 2025 Champions Trophy as well.
"I've given everything I've had for the last 18 years; I've stayed loyal to this team no matter what. I've had moments where I thought otherwise, but I stuck to this team. I stood behind them, they stood behind me. I've always dreamt of winning it with them.
@RCBTweets pic.twitter.com/lNG8bxEtJ2
— AB de Villiers (@ABdeVilliers17) June 3, 2025
"This is far more special than winning it with anyone else, because my heart is with Bangalore, my soul is with Bangalore. As I said, this is the team I'm going to play for till the last day I play the IPL. So, this one is absolutely right up there.
"As sportsmen we grind for something, and this is a very high-intensity, high-quality tournament which is of great value in world cricket today. And I'm someone that wants to win the big tournaments, the big moments, this one was missing and tonight I'm going to sleep like a baby."
Having retired from Test cricket - his favourite format - last month, Kohli spoke of his quest to improve and continue to find ways to stay motivated. He ended the season as RCB's highest run-scorer, with 657 and eight half-centuries, all of them coming in victories.
"I've an opportunity to play this game for not many years," he said. "So, there's an end date to our career as you know. By the time I hang up our boots, I can sit at home and say I gave it everything I had. I look for ways to improve.
"I can't play as an Impact Player. I want to field, field 20 overs and make an impact in the field. That's the kind of player I am. God's blessed me with the perspective and talent, I'm so very grateful for this victory, so thankful for god for giving it to me finally tonight. I just put my head down, stay humble, work as hard as I possibly can, find ways to help the team."
Kohli praised the RCB management for assembling a strong squad at the auction and then backing them through challenging phases during the season.
"This management and group of players have been outstanding to be honest," he said. "They've got in the right kind of players, people who take the game on. In the auction, a lot of people questioned our tactics. But by the end of day two, we were very happy with what we had.
"We had a lot of confidence in the strength of this group. And I want to give a big shout out to this team. It wouldn't have been possible without each and everyone: in the squad, in the playing XI, the management backing the players, keeping us positive throughout when the going got tough. So, it's everyone's. I don't want to sit here, and talk about myself. There's a lot that's been spoken about me already. This win is for Bangalore. It's for each and everyone of the players, their families and the management."
When asked what Test cricket meant to him, Kohli, speaking on the subject for the first time since he retired, said: "This moment [the IPL win] is right up there with the best moments I've had in my career, but it's still marks five levels under Test cricket. That's how much I value Test cricket. That's how much I love Test cricket. I would just urge youngsters coming through to treat that format with respect.
"If you perform in Test cricket, you walk around anywhere in the world, people look you in the eye, shake your hand and say well done, you played the game really well. If you want to earn respect in world cricket all over, take up Test cricket, give your heart and soul to it and earn the respect from legends."