RCB’s 2025 Win or CSK’s 2018 Replay? 4 Uncanny Parallels You Can’t Ignore

Eighteen years of heartbreak, memes, and what-ifs — finally, RCB has accomplished it. On June 3, 2025, the Royal Challengers by Bengaluru lifted their first IPL trophy in a nail-biting final against Punjab Kings. The celebrations are still reverberating through the Bengaluru streets. However, fans and cricket nerds alike are noticing something interesting — this RCB campaign feels eerily familiar.

If you were to speed it back to 2018, there was another team that made a monumental comeback, conquered the odds, and enjoyed successful team performance – Chennai Super Kings (under MS Dhoni). What a coincidence?! Maybe. Anyway, here are four parallels between RCB’s 2025 unforgettable run and CSK’s immortal title run in 2018.

Second-Place Finish and a Dominant Playoff Run

There’s something about coming in second that ignites the killer instinct. In 2018, CSK finished the league stage in second and then beat SRH twice – first in Qualifier 1 and again in the Final – to win the title.

Now it’s 2025, and RCB executed almost the same script. Once again, they came in second, then marched to Qualifier 1 against Punjab Kings and won comfortably, by 8 wickets. Then they came up against their same opponent in the final and ground out a nervy win. The only difference – CSK chased while RCB defended. But the drama and sense of deja vu? Undeniable.

Also read:- RCB’s Fab Five: Breaking Down the Heroes Behind the 2025 IPL Victory

Indian Batting Maestro Crosses 600 Runs

Championship-winning teams need at least one batter who’s in the form of their life. For the CSK side in 2018, it was Ambati Rayudu who lit it up with 602 runs, reinventing himself as a classy and consistent top-order batter.

This time, it was King Kohli. At the age of 36, with critics whispering about his T20 shelf life, Virat put together a masterful season, putting up 657 runs from 15 innings with eight fifties. He wasn’t just making runs; he was absorbing pressure, anchoring innings, and accelerating too, whenever he pleased.

Consistency is King: No Back-to-Back Losses

If you would like to lift the trophy, you can never lose back-to-back games. Both CSK in 2018 and RCB in 2025 are good examples to use this logic on their seasons.

CSK in 2018 did not lose back-to-back games, although it was partially about keeping that rhythm going. RCB were also as consistent in 2025, they never lost back-to-back games in all 16 matches they played! The key reason? Their resilience. They would bounce back after a loss without any issues at all. They always seemed to be in total control of their games, regardless of the situation.

That’s where the mental strength differentiates the champions from the rest of the pack; both teams had plenty of it!

Squad Depth That Delivered Match-Winning Moments

Okay, let’s save star power for a moment — depth wins championships. CSK’s success from 2018 onward came from all players stepping up, contributing, and being contributive. Eight different players were named Player of the Match. In other words, Captain MS Dhoni had match-winners all over the park.

RCB used that blueprint and added one more. In their 2025 title run, nine different players received Player of the Match awards, with Krunal Pandya performing all-around magic, to brilliant efforts from Tim David, Josh Hazlewood, and wicketkeeper Jitesh Sharma. This wasn’t a one-person production.

And as the trophy has finally found a home in Bengaluru, you have to wonder: is this the beginning of the legendary golden period of RCB, of an RCB era similar to CSK? Only time — and perhaps some more similarities between the two — will tell.