Royal Challengers Bengaluru batter Venkatesh Iyer said Virat Kohli’s presence gave them a mental edge after IPL 2026 triumph.  Royal Challengers Bengaluru defeated Gujarat Titans by five wickets at the Narendra Modi Stadium, Ahmedabad, on Sunday to win their second IPL title.

Chasing 156 for the win, Kohli scored a fine knock of 75 runs off just 42 balls. The talisman struck nine fours and three sixes in his blistering knock as he batted at the top of his game. The veteran once again made the most of his experience in the run-chase and got the job done for his team.

Furthermore, Iyer also played a key hand, scoring 32 runs off just 16 balls in the summit clash. Overall, he scored 209 runs in six innings for RCB at a strike rate of 186.60.

“There is so much to learn from him. In the chase, the plan was to go hard at the top. In a 160-run chase, games are often won in the powerplay, and GT have a very good bowling attack. At RCB, the plan is always to target the opposition’s strong point, and that’s what Virat does to perfection. Even when we lost a couple of quick wickets, there was never any panic because we knew that with Virat there, we had control. His very presence in the middle gives us a mental edge over the opposition. And, as we all saw, he stayed out there till the end and closed out the game,” Venkatesh told Revsportz.

Iyer said Kohli’s hunger for hard work despite achieving all the success has always been an inspiration to him.

“With Virat there, you know you can’t be loose with your drills. He is always full of intensity and commitment, and when you see someone who has achieved as much as he has do it day in and day out, ball after ball, both on and off the field, you feel inspired to do the same. His presence itself makes a big difference, and that’s something each of us has used as a learning,” he continued.

Kohli scored a total of 675 runs in 16 matches of IPL 2026 at an average of 56.25 and a strike rate of 165.84.