Virat Kohli's teammate opens up on star cricketer's BIG advice in RCB win in IPL 2025 final, he said, 'look t – india.com

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Royal Challengers Bengaluru won the Indian Premier League title after a wait of 18 years. RCB had lost in two previous IPL finals but third time was a charm as Rajat Patidar’s side beat Punjab Kings in the IPL 2025 final earlier this year.

Team India and Karnataka opener Mayank Agarwal was part of the RCB set up when they had lost the 2011 final to Chennai Super Kings and it took him 14 years to finally get his hands around the trophy. Agarwal, who went unsold in the IPL 2025 mega auction last year, was signed up at his base price of Rs 1 crore as replacement for Devdutt Padikkal in the middle of the season.

“I gave myself 6-8 hours after the auction. Yes, thoughts came; I haven’t got picked, this could have been, that could have been but I was brutally honest with myself: ‘yes, you aren’t picked.’ There have to be a few places you need to work on, and if it’s even just a couple of things, why not fix them now for the coming season. Rather than leaning on auction dynamics, I just kept asking, what can I improve right now? I listed points with my batting coach and started immediately,” Agarwal said on the RCB podcast.

Agarwal revealed that it was a ‘nervy’ IPL 2025 final for him against Punjab Kings in June this year. RCB teammate and former captain Virat Kohli adviced him how to deal with PBKS all-rounder Kyle Jamieson.

“It was nervy. In the qualifier, Kyle Jamieson had a good over at me, so in the final when he started again, Virat said, ‘He’s getting bounce and shape; look to attack him square of the wicket, not just past third man.’ Once the first boundary came, the confidence followed and we put pressure back. Phil Salt’s intent set it up. My role was to keep the momentum. If I could soak up the pressure and turn it back quickly, our partnership would flow, and it did,” Agarwal said about the final.
“ , .”
From going unsold to getting that mid-season call from RCB, Mayank opens up on staying prepared, his… pic.twitter.com/2G9zkzP98J
— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) November 10, 2025

On the feeling of RCB winning after 18 years, Agarwal said, “My first year at RCB was 2011; we lost the final in Chennai. Winning now wasn’t just joy, it was closure to 2011. To go from not being part of the IPL to being part of the team that won it for the first time in 18 years, that’s history, and it’s hard to put into words. It was massive not just for the franchise but for the fans, players, and everyone connected to RCB. You could feel years of emotion release in that moment.”
Agarwal has scored 1488 runs in 21 Tests for Team India with 4 hundreds at an average of 41.33 with a best of 243 against South Africa. In IPL, he has scored 2756 runs in 131 matches with 1 hundred and 13 fifties.
“I made a routine and followed it to the tee: wake up at 5, train, go to RX sir for skill sessions, finish by mid-afternoon, spend time with family, then give myself half an hour before sleep to plan tomorrow. And then just relentlessly go about doing that, day after day. If I had achieved the plan for the day by 3 or 3:30, I allowed myself to switch off. But the next day’s checklist was already ready the night before,” he revealed.
On the RCB trial and selection mindset, Agarwal said, “Andy (Flower) was very straightforward: ‘This is a selection match; make it or break it.’ I loved that. It put me in a spot where I had to perform, exactly like a real game. I did well, the coaches were happy, and they felt, ‘This guy is ready; we don’t need to spend time preparing him for the game.’ Being told to come for open nets and practice games, not straight into the squad, was refreshing. It meant I had to earn it the same way I’d have to in a pressure situation.”
Devadyuti Das is a passionate sports reporter and editor with experience of over 20 years in sports media. He has covered almost every sport for print and digital media. While Cricket is his first lov … Read More
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