Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) take on Punjab Kings (PBKS) as Shreyas Iyer won the toss and elected to bowl first in the all-important Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 final at the Narendra Modi stadium in Ahmedabad on June 3.
What did the captains say after the toss?
After winning the toss, PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer said:
"We're going to bowl. Only want to give positive signs to my mind and body. It's an amazing day. Crowd is electrifying. All we have to do is come here and cherish. Boys are in brilliant shape and mindset. All we spoke about in the team meeting is the more calm you are, the better. Nerves are fine. I won't say it's just like another game. It's the final and we're going to play like a final. Tremendous feeling just thinking about lifting the trophy. Same team."
Meanwhile, RCB skipper Rajat Patidar, after losing the toss, said:
"We were also going to bowl. Pitch looks hard, will try to put a good score and put them under pressure. Till now we've played good cricket. It's just another game for us. It's a big stage but as I said it's just another away game for us. Same team. Pitch is looking good. I think it's a flat track, a mix of red and black soil."
Punjab Kings' Playing XI
Priyansh Arya, Josh Inglis(w), Shreyas Iyer(c), Nehal Wadhera, Shashank Singh, Marcus Stoinis, Azmatullah Omarzai, Kyle Jamieson, Vijaykumar Vyshak, Arshdeep Singh, Yuzvendra Chahal
Punjab Kings Impact Subs: Prabhsimran Singh, Praveen Dubey, Suryansh Shedge, Xavier Bartlet, Harpreet Brar
Royal Challengers Bengaluru's Playing XI
Philip Salt, Virat Kohli, Mayank Agarawal, Rajat Patidar(c), Liam Livingstone, Jitesh Sharma(w), Romario Shepherd, Krunal Pandya, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Yash Dayal, Josh Hazlewood
Royal Challengers Bengaluru Impact Subs: Rasikh Salam, Manoj Bhandage, Tim Seifert, Swapnil Singh, Suyash Sharma.
Pitch report
"Square boundaries are 64 metres on either side. 72m down the ground. Looks like a belter of a wicket. It looks great, consistent and will be really flat. Don't think 200 is enough on this wicket. Back of length and using those square boundaries will be key. This is a 25 percent black soil and 75 percent red soil surface. 6 of the 8 games here have been won by teams batting first here," Murali Kartik and Michael Clarke analysed the pitch.
Head-to-Head
Talking about the head-to-head record between RCB and PBKS, Bengaluru have won 18 matches while Punjab have also clinched as many wins in a total of 36 encounters played between them in IPL
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