Virat Kohli shed tears of joy when RCB won their maiden IPL title last year; this year he just broke into a satisfied smile. There was physical pain, but not mental agony, no cathartic release but simply the joy of retaining the crown. Last season, Kohli was prancing up and down the pitch, chewing his nails and pulling his hair out in tension when RCB defended 190 by mere six runs. This time, he knew fate was in his hands. The chase came with an odd stutter but Kohli’s belief was unwavering. He wrapped up the chase with a swirled six over long-on. Post match, that same night last May, he choked for words. This time, it was just like another night. He admitted: “I said it doesn’t feel like there’s the same pressure as we had last year. We topped the table and said we’re the best if we execute our plans. Just the skill-set, composure and maturity we had shown.”– Sandip GXxxPunch, counterpunchShubman Gill inflicted the first blow on Josh Hazlewood. He leapt out of the surface and cuffed him through mid-wicket fence for a four, the first he bowled. The design was clear as daylight, as he disheveled the Australian metronome’s unerring lengths. Hazlewood did not fluster, he did not so much as smirk as grimace. The next ball was similar, the line a touch closer to Gill’s off-stump. The Titans captain shanked out, not as full-throttle as the previous one. He tried to swipe the ball across the line, riding the bounce. But this ball bounced a trifle more and Gill’s miscue looped in the air. The counterpunch was immediate. Hazlewood let out a roar.– Sandip GXxxPersonal duel, short but sweetThe first ball, delivered with a wobble seam, had Shubman Gill groping and made contact with the inside half of the bat. The next one, with an upright seam, moved away just enough to beat the outside edge, prompting oohs and aahs from connoisseurs.But if one thought Bhuvneshwar Kumar would have things his way in the early personal clash, Gill provided an immediate riposte with a dreamy on-the-up cover drive that left fielders rooted to the spot.The next delivery was under-edged to short third before Gill took matters into his own hand by making room to cut to the offside sweeper for a single.Just to make the point that Bhuvi has no real preference in bowling to right- and left-handers, the last ball of the over went past southpaw Sai Sudharsan’s bat on the offside, though the batter may have intentionally played inside the line.Story continues below this adThe early skirmish in the big final was always going to be the key, and with Josh Hazlewood taking out Gill in the next over, fans were denied Round 2 of his duel with Bhuvi.– Tushar BhaduriXxxRasikh, unsung stinging fourth beetleThe canny Rasikh Salam has been the black and white telly in the high definition RCB seam show. He is not express quick; he doesn’t have a hat of tricks; he doesn’t always get the new ball; batsmen perceive him as the one to he hit, after the stifle and strangle of Bhuvneshwar Kumar-Josh Hazlewood-Jacob Duffy. But he has a large menu of useful balls, as he hurries batsmen off the surface. He moves the ball a shade either way. He is quicker than most batsmen think he is. Titans’ Nishant Sindhu underestimated his pace and paid the price by dragging a hard length ball straight to long-on. The ball arrived a wee bit quicker than he had judged. Marginally, and Rasikh deals with fine margins. He has quietly emerged as a bankable wicket-taker too, plucking 17, his side’s second highest wicket-taker of the tournament, the unsung stinging fourth beetle.– Sandip GXxxVenkatesh ‘Maxwells’ Rabada & SirajIn Qualifier I and in the final, Venkatesh Iyer had an effective approach to overcome the best new ball pair this IPL. Both Mohammed Siraj and Kagiso Rabada are known for hitting the Test match lengths consistently. It is a length that has troubled all sorts of batsmen. RCB didn’t need a quick fire start on Sunday, but letting the two pacers dictate terms could have ended up playing into the hands of GT. So he straight away got down to disrupting their rhythm, bringing out horizontal bat shots while shuffling back and across. It meant the boundaries flowed straight away. Like Qualifier I, Iyer’s knock created the impact that RCB sought at the start. In the middle of it, he appeared to pull his muscle. Another instance of an impact player walking out and struggling to get going. Striking at 200, 28 of his 32 runs came from spot swinging in boundaries before Siraj sent him back.– Venkata Krishna BXxxJust 4 singles in first 55 runsWith Gujarat Titans having to defend the fifth highest total to win the title in IPL history, Royal Challengers openers Venkatesh Iyer and Virat Kohli seemed to be only dealing in boundaries and sixes during the run-chase. In the first four overs of the chase, Iyer and Kohli smashed a total of two sixes and nine boundaries to propel the Bengaluru side to 55 for 0. The pair had only ran four singles along with one leg-bye in the first 24 balls of the chase with the Titans’ bowlers being treated with belligerence. In contrast, Titans had five singles to show in their first four overs having lost two wickets for 30 runs. RCB finished with 70/2 in the Powerplay.– Nitin SharmaXxxKohli goes for the killStory continues below this adThis IPL has seen a different side of Kohli. Having already shown last season that he isn’t going to play the anchor role, this season he has taken his attacking approach to another level. Kohli, of the old, when he waits and gets his eye in, preferred to finish games off. It meant he took fewer risks. Not anymore. Here when Rabada and Siraj attacked with short deliveries, he went for the kill — all statement shots that showed he meant business and wants to finish the chase early. Going at a strike-rate of over 200 he ensured even when GT took wickets, RCB were able to put the pressure back on the opposition. Apart from Venkatesh Iyer, it was Kohli who provided the much needed impetus for the defending champions trying to nail down this tricky target. And it wasn’t wild slogging, but all crisp shots, defining his batsmanship.– Venkata Krishna BXxxGill-Kohli’s chemistry crackles over a claimed catchIt wasn’t the first low catch that went to the third umpire in the game. But its authenticity set the Ahmedabad grass blades on fire, as Indian cricket’s two biggest stars – Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill found themselves in a situation where sparks crackled. Kohli missed the timing on lofting an Arshad Khan full length delivery as the bat toe end chipped at the ball. The popping ball found Gill at mid-on as the India ODI captain dived in front clutching the claimed catch in his fingers. He celebrated promptly, but Kohli would watch the big screen replay and worked up a frenzy the moment he realised it might’ve caught a grass blade dipping down before Gill lifted his arms. The umpire was called upon to look at it, and he confirmed the catch wasn’t clean. Gill looked chagrined and shared a few words with Kohli – though nothing unsavory. He would walk off with flared nostrils as Not Out flashed on the screen. A few minutes later as Kohli secured the win finishing with 75 off 42, the second title sealed, Kohli would shake hands with Gill and ruffle his hair like a mature senior.Xxx