Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) Director of Cricket Mo Bobat delivered a charged dressing-room address after the franchise defended their Indian Premier League (IPL) title at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad on 1 June 2026, urging his players to become 'addicted' to the feeling of winning championships. RCB defeated Gujarat Titans (GT) to clinch back-to-back IPL crowns, joining an elite club of repeat champions in the tournament's history.

A Historic Achievement

With this victory, RCB became only the third franchise in IPL history to win consecutive titles, following Chennai Super Kings (CSK) and Mumbai Indians (MI). The win cements the Bengaluru-based side's standing among the competition's most storied franchises — a remarkable turnaround for a team that had long been defined by near-misses before their first title.

Bobat's Dressing-Room Speech

In a video shared by RCB on their social media channels, Bobat addressed the victorious squad with a rallying call for sustained excellence. 'I'm going to ask you to do something. I'm going to ask you to really, really make sure we get addicted to this feeling, because this is a start. Not many teams have won back-to-back IPLs. It's happened twice before. So get addicted to the feeling, because it's that feeling that drives the hunger to go again next year,' Bobat said.

'It's that addiction to winning and winning that trophy and sharing these moments that drives us on,' he added. The address was framed not as a celebration of arrival but as a declaration of intent — Bobat positioning the back-to-back triumph as the foundation of a dominant era rather than its peak.

How RCB Won the Final

Having won the toss, captain Rajat Patidar elected to bowl first — a call that paid off swiftly as RCB's seamers dismantled GT's batting line-up with a disciplined short-ball strategy, restricting the hosts to 155/8. In reply, RCB's chase was defined by an explosive opening partnership. Virat Kohli remained unbeaten on 75 alongside Venkatesh Iyer's 32, and the pair brought up their team fifty in just 3.3 overs — the fastest fifty by a side in an IPL final. RCB reached 161/5 with 12 balls to spare, sealing a commanding win.

What This Means for RCB

Historically, RCB spent over a decade as the IPL's most high-profile underachievers — a franchise carrying enormous star power but no silverware. The back-to-back titles represent a structural shift: from a team built around individual brilliance to one with repeatable systems, as evidenced by Bobat's emphasis on culture and collective hunger. This is the second such back-to-back run in IPL history after Mumbai Indians and Chennai Super Kings each achieved the feat, underscoring just how rare sustained dominance is in the format.

What's Next

With Bobat explicitly framing this as 'a start', RCB will head into the IPL 2027 auction cycle as defending champions and strong favourites. The challenge now is retaining the core of a title-winning squad while managing the salary cap pressures that have historically disrupted back-to-back contenders in franchise cricket.