Punjab Kings stand in the way of Virat Kohli’s dream of finally winning the Indian Premier League in Tuesday’s final at the world’s biggest cricket stadium.
No matter which team prevails at the 132,000-capacity venue in Ahmedabad it will be a first — neither Punjab nor Kohli’s Royal Challengers Bengaluru have won the IPL since it launched in 2008.
Punjab booked their place in the decider with a five-wicket victory over five-time champions Mumbai Indians on Sunday.
Shreyas Iyer played a captain’s knock with an unbeaten 87.
Kohli and Bengaluru will have a psychological edge after thrashing Punjab by eight wickets at the start of the playoffs last week.
It is the fourth time that Kohli and his team have reached the final of cricket’s richest tournament, but they have never been able to take that last step.
The vast majority in attendance will be cheering on Kohli, the 36-year-old superstar batsman and icon to Indian cricket fans.
Kohli, who last month retired from Test cricket alongside Rohit Sharma, has again been Bengaluru’s go-to batsman with 614 runs, including eight half-centuries, in 14 innings this season.
He has made no attempt to hide his desperation to win the IPL at the 18th attempt and add it to a long list of accolades that includes two World Cup crowns.
He has talked about his “heartbreak” of failing to win the IPL, and celebrated last week’s win against Punjab saying: “One more to go.”
Punjab’s fast bowling coach James Hopes said Monday his team will be “recovering and getting mentally prepared” for what he anticipates will be a “pretty big crowd, and a pretty big pro-Kohli crowd as well”.
As well as Kohli, Bengaluru boast the significant threat of Australian fast bowler Josh Hazlewood.
The 34-year-old returned following a shoulder injury and a stint back home to put in a man-of-the-match performance in the win over Punjab in the qualifier.
He returned figures of 3-21 to help bundle Punjab out for 101.
Hazlewood spearheads a seam-bowling attack alongside Bhuvneshwar Kumar and left-armer Yash Dayal.
Punjab, coached by Australia great Ricky Ponting, recovered from defeat to win the rain-delayed second qualifier in Ahmedabad.
Skipper Iyer, who cost $3.17 million in November’s auction, is narrowly behind Kohli in the batting charts with 603 runs from 16 innings.
His latest chase masterclass off 41 balls, laced with five fours and eight sixes, is a reminder that he is lethal on his day.
“I love such big occasions,” Iyer said after the win over Mumbai.
“I always say to myself and my colleagues that the bigger the occasion, the calmer you are, and you’ll get the best results.”
Former Australia medium-pace bowler Hopes said that Iyer “doesn’t get flustered very easily”.
“He knows what he has to do and he’s prepared to take that risk,” said Hopes.
“He is a sensational captain and a sensational player,” he added.
Punjab openers Priyansh Arya and Prabhsimran Singh are in good form, and they have another potential match-winner in Australia’s Josh Inglis.
All-rounders Marcus Stoinis from Australia and Afghanistan’s Azmatullah Omarzai can also threaten Kohli’s long-awaited dream.
