Krunal Pandya became the only player to win POTM awards in two IPL finals.
At the Narendra Modi Stadium on Tuesday, Krunal Pandya led Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to their first Indian Premier League (IPL 2025) championship with a Player of the Match performance.
Krunal used his entire arsenal when he was purchased by RCB for Rs 5.75 crore at the super auction, preventing Punjab Kings from taking the lead during their pursuit.
His 2 for 17, which featured the vital dismissals of Josh Inglis and Prabhsimran Singh, changed the course of the match and was a major factor in the RCB's six-run triumph.
Krunal subsequently disclosed that he had made it clear to the organization in their initial conversation that his goal was to win trophies, and he delivered on that promise with a performance that defined the contest.
“When we batted, we realised the slower you bowl, the better it is. In this format, you need guts to do it. I just backed myself and thought I'd vary my pace and keep it on the slower side more often. My biggest strength has been to learn what the situation requires. I knew I had to be brave to get wickets tonight. Thought I'd do that by bowling slow. If you'd have bowled quick, it'd have been a good wicket. But if you mixed it up, it was tougher. Pitch actually got easier in the second innings,” said Krunal while collecting the POTM trophy.
Hardik Pandya had posted a story on Instagram praising brother Krunal, cheering him for RCB’s IPL win.
Krunal revealed his chat with Hardik on phone and stated that he ensured that Pandya household will have another IPL trophy.
“Have enjoyed my time with RCB so far. I told them on day one that I like to win trophies. I told Hardik too that the Pandya household will have nine trophies in 11 years,” he added.
With his effort on Tuesday, Krunal became the only player to win two Player of the Match accolades in IPL finals, giving him four IPL titles overall, three of which he has won with the Mumbai Indians.
In the IPL 2017 final, he was MI's first Player of the Match against the Rising Pune Supergiants.