Virat Kohli has opened up about the profound emotional weight of finally winning the Indian Premier League (IPL) title with Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), calling it one of the most fulfilling moments of his cricketing life. Speaking on the official RCB podcast, the veteran batter said the 18-year wait made the triumph feel unlike anything he had ever experienced on a cricket field.

The Moment That Brought Kohli to His Knees

Kohli, who has been part of the RCB setup since 2008 — first as a player, then as captain — described how the final moments of the title-clinching match left him overwhelmed. 'All those emotions, all those feelings came out in a form of just being on my knees and just holding my hands and saying, thank you. That I could experience this before I stopped playing,' he said.

The 37-year-old was visibly emotional after RCB secured their maiden IPL title by beating Punjab Kings at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on 3 June. The win ended the franchise's long-standing reputation as perennial nearly-men of the tournament.

Why the Wait Made It More Meaningful

Kohli was candid about the cumulative pressure that had built over nearly two decades of near-misses. 'I still say it's very difficult to explain to people in words how I felt in the last four balls of the last over. When you see from the outside what has happened to the franchise, how RCB has been looked at for so many years... as a big team, big franchise that's never won — the almost champions, the ones that have come close but never really won the trophy,' he said.

He drew a sharp distinction between watching a franchise struggle and living through it season after season. 'There's one thing to observe it, and there's one thing to live it. And I have lived through all of those seasons,' Kohli added. Notably, RCB had reached the IPL final on three previous occasions — in 2009, 2011, and 2016 — without lifting the trophy.

No Regret, But a Lingering Wonder

Kohli acknowledged that a title miss would not have left him consumed by regret, but conceded there would always have been an unanswered question. 'Although I wouldn't have carried on regretting it. But there would have been a part of me that would have wondered, you know, what it would have felt like to experience that moment,' he said.

He was equally clear that winning earlier in his career would not have produced the same emotional resonance. 'I can for sure, with absolute honesty and clarity, say that it wouldn't have been 5% of the feeling I had, had we won it in the earlier years. And the accumulation of all that stress and all that pressure. And for it to happen after 18 years, there couldn't have been a better experience for me in my cricketing journey,' Kohli said.

Kohli's Form in IPL 2026

The outpouring of emotion comes against the backdrop of a strong ongoing season for Kohli. He has scored 484 runs in 12 matches in IPL 2026, with RCB currently sitting at the top of the points table as they look to defend their title. His form underlines that, far from winding down, Kohli remains central to the franchise's ambitions heading into the business end of the tournament.