Eighteen years. Four finals between them. Zero trophies. Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Punjab Kings have lived through every IPL era without ever tasting ultimate glory. On Tuesday night at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad, that will change. One of them will finally join the ranks of IPL champions. For the other, the familiar pain of “what could have been” will linger a little longer.
For Punjab Kings, this season has already been their most successful in over a decade — a campaign built on smart leadership and a fearless brand of cricket. Now, standing one win away from a historic title, they are likely to stick to the same XI that helped them down the Mumbai Indians in Qualifier 2. But there’s one major cloud hovering over their selection — the fitness of Yuzvendra Chahal.
Will Chahal Play the Final? A Familiar Foe for RCB
Yuzvendra Chahal has been here before — twice, in fact — and lost both IPL finals, once with RCB and once with RR. He also technically “won” a title with MI in 2013, but having played just one match that season, it hardly feels like redemption. If fit, Tuesday will offer him a shot at closure — and fittingly, against the team he served for eight seasons.
Chahal missed Qualifier 1 due to a hand injury but returned for the clash against MI, picking up the vital wicket of Suryakumar Yadav. However, PBKS bowling coach James Hopes revealed he was not fully fit. Against RCB earlier this season, Chahal bowled a brilliant 2 for 11 in a rain-shortened game, and his overall IPL numbers vs RCB — 9 wickets in 9 games at an economy of 7.77 — suggest he remains a key weapon.
PBKS Predicted XI vs RCB – IPL 2025 Final
| Position | Player | Role |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Priyansh Arya | Right-hand batter |
| 2 | Prabhsimran Singh | Right-hand batter |
| 3 | Josh Inglis (wk) | Right-hand batter, wicketkeeper |
| 4 | Shreyas Iyer (c) | Right-hand batter |
| 5 | Nehal Wadhera | Left-hand batter |
| 6 | Shashank Singh | Right-hand batter |
| 7 | Marcus Stoinis | Right-hand batter, seam bowling |
| 8 | Azmatullah Omarzai | Right-hand batter, seam bowling |
| 9 | Kyle Jamieson | Right-arm fast bowler |
| 10 | Arshdeep Singh | Left-arm fast bowler |
| 11 | Yuzvendra Chahal / Harpreet Brar | Leg-spin / Left-arm spin |
If Chahal is ruled out, Punjab may turn to Harpreet Brar, whose left-arm spin could trouble RCB’s right-hander-heavy batting order.
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