Go beyond limits with our YouTube channel. Subscribe now!In a high-scoring match, RCB scored a mammoth total of 240 runs for four wickets but restricted MI to 222 runs for four wickets. On a flat surface where there was nothing for the bowlers, Krunal took one for 26 in four overs and took the crucial wicket of India T20 captain Suryakumar Yadav, who was looking dangerous while batting on 33, before he swept the left-arm spinner to deep backward square leg. Krunal thus helped RCB derail MI’s innings in the middle overs, which proved to be decisive in the end. In a position he knows well, Krunal once again showed why he is a valuable asset for RCB.“Wankhede has always been close to my heart. I have played here for six years and was fortunate to win three trophies during that time,” Krunal said in the post-match press conference.“So it’s always special to come here, and as I said last year, ultimately the points were coming home. One Pandya had to win, and I think I was lucky in that,” he said.Since moving to RCB from Lucknow Supergiants in 2025, Krunal has become a reliable man in their setup. He played a key role in their title-winning campaign last season, taking 17 wickets @ 22.29 in 15 matches and contributing 109 runs @ 18.16 with the bat lower down the order. That run included a brilliant, match-changing effort of two wickets for 17 runs in four overs in the final against Punjab Kings. Krunal, named as the ‘Player of the Match’, turned the tables in RCB’s favor by taking the wickets of Prabhasmiran Singh and Josh Inglis, leaving Punjab Kings six runs behind while chasing 191. So far in IPL 2026, Krunal has taken five wickets at 23.60 with an economy rate of 9.07 in four matches for the defending champions. Pandya’s spell has helped RCB regain control and win the battle in the middle overs. More than the numbers, his ability to step up in big moments is what is most important. The 35-year-old Baroda captain is the only cricketer to win the Player of the Match award twice in an IPL final.‘Don’t plan ahead to throw a bouncer but want to be one step ahead of the batsmen’One ‘wonder weapon’ that Krunal has used successfully against batsmen is the bouncer – a delivery not usually associated with spinners. Krunal said that he uses deliveries according to his gut feeling and to stay one step ahead of the batsmen.“I never shy away from trying different and new things because with the Impact Player rule, earlier, you had No. 6 or 7 as all-rounders and the batting was quite different. But now at No. 8, pure batsmen (are coming) and apart from the skill set, young boys like Mukul (Choudhary) and Vaibhav (Suryavanshi) are consistently hitting with the first ball. As a bowler, I want to be one step ahead both skill-wise and mentally.““I am happy that it is coming out well and hopefully in this format, there are finger spinners who will stick and who can take something out of it and do well. Because (with a) flat track and eight batsmen, it has become very difficult for the finger spinners,” Krunal said.Often caught by surprise by the spinner bowling a short fast ball, the batsman leaves the ball alone. Krunal said that his bouncers are pre-planned, but spontaneous. He said, “I am someone who listens to my gut. I don’t plan in advance whether I will bowl the fourth or fifth or sixth ball (as a bouncer). There come days when I will bowl two bouncers one after the other and suddenly I will bowl the first ball and the sixth ball.”“But yes, it is kind of an inner feeling about when to bowl which ball and I am 100 per cent committed to it. People talk a lot about my bouncers and the balls which look quite different and fun… but I have always worked on the fundamentals of my bowling and if you see I am tall and I am able to get the bounce, I am also able to deceive the spin and flight and get the batsmen out. I don’t practice bowling bouncers much. It’s just that I actually bowl in the game,” he explained. ‘Kohli should be fine’ Meanwhile, Krunal said that Virat Kohli The batting superstar is expected to “recover” after missing the field for the second half of the game due to an ankle injury. “I haven’t spoken to the physio yet but I think he will be fine. I think there is nothing to worry about,” Krunal said.