Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) finally ended the 18-year drought by winning the IPL 2025 title, RCB created history by defeating Punjab Kings (PBKS) by 6 runs in the final.
The biggest secret of this spectacular victory was “Operation Sindoor”? On this, head coach Andy Flower revealed how this unwanted break gave new strength to the team and opened the way to become the champion.
On May 9, due to the increasing tension between India and Pakistan, BCCI had to stop IPL for a week. This break was no less than a miracle for RCB.
During this, captain Rajat Patidar got a chance to recover from his finger injury, while star fast bowler Josh Hazlewood healed his shoulder injury in Australia. Hazlewood took the title of RCB’s top wicket-taker by taking 22 wickets in just 12 matches.
How Operation Sindoor was a game-changer for RCB
Flower said in the press conference after the victory,
“When we were celebrating this evening, some people told me that the break during ‘Operation Sindoor’ gave Josh Hazlewood time to recover from his shoulder injury and most importantly, Rajat Patidar got a chance to recover from his finger injury.
But we missed Tim David and Devdutt Padikkal in our starting team, who were an important part of our campaign. Those who believe in luck will probably see a story in this. That break gave us a chance to rethink our game and make a strategy, which we benefited from.”
Rajat Patidar also showed amazing performance with the bat. In his very first season as captain, he scored 312 runs in 15 matches at a strike rate of 143.77.
Praising him, Flower said, “Rajat did a great job as an inexperienced captain. Even under so much pressure, his batting was not affected.
He is the same gentle and humble person whom we have known since last year. It is not easy to captain a team with big stars like RCB, but Rajat took great decisions and led the big players very well.”
This victory of RCB brought an emotional moment for the fans. Virat Kohli’s shining eyes and the pictures of celebration with the trophy touched the heart of every fan.
Flower admitted that this break was necessary not only for physical recovery but also to motivate the team and strengthen the strategy.
Finally, in an unseen way, “Operation Sindoor” gave RCB the strength that led them to the IPL 2025 trophy.
