Ex-UK Prime Minister Rishi Sunak Makes Preference Clear Ahead Of RCB vs PBKS IPL Final. Says "Married Into..."

Former Prime Minister of the United Kingdom (UK) Rishi Sunak has made his preference clear ahead of the highly-anticipated Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 final between Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Punjab Kings (PBKS). Sunak has pledged his loyalty for RCB, ahead of the match where both teams will be vying for their very first title. In fact, Sunak stated that he supported RCB owing to the Bangalore connection of his wife Akshata Murty. Sunak even stated that owning one of Virat Kohli's bats - which he had been gifted - is one of his prized possessions.

"I'm married into a Bangalore family, so RCB is my team," Sunak told Times of India.

"We went to matches a long time ago and I used to cheer them on in Downing Street," Sunak added, elaborating on his long-standing support for the franchise.

RCB will be playing their fourth IPL final in 2025, having lost all three previous finals. On the other hand, PBKS will be playing their second final, having lost to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in 2014.

Indian External Affairs Minister S. Jaishankar had presented Sunak one of Kohli's bats in a meet, which Sunak labelled as a prized possession.

"It's one of my prized possessions," Sunak said.

Sunak also lauded the way the IPL improves cricketers, and mentioned that he's hoping for big contributions from RCB's English stars like Phil Salt and Liam Livingstone. Jacob Bethell was also a part of the RCB setup, but had to leave to join England on international duty.

"The IPL has transformed cricket. Every cricketer, everywhere, wants to play in the IPL at some point in their career now. I was at Edgbaston last week watching England vs West Indies. Jacob Bethell played a brilliant innings. The IPL has improved him as a player," Sunak said.

"It's been great for the women's game, getting more girls into the sport. But it's also a sign of the influence that India now has in the 21st century. India's passions, India's tastes now have global impact," Sunak said, speaking on the IPL and Women's Premier League (WPL)'s influence.

PBKS topped the IPL 2025 points table, but were thoroughly outclassed by RCB in Qualifier 1. PBKS bounced back by beating Mumbai Indians (MI) in Qualifier 2, booking their spot in the final.

The IPL 2025 final starts at 7:30 PM on Tuesday, June 3, and is taking place at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Topics mentioned in this article

Royal Challengers Bengaluru Punjab Kings IPL 2025 Cricket