Head coach Andy Flower's emotional speech underlines Virat Kohli's legacy in RCB's IPL 2026 triumph | WATCH

For 19 long years, Virat Kohli has been the backbone of Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB), and he took control of the team's fate when they needed 156 on May 31 to win their second consecutive IPL title.

Virat's unbeaten 75 off just 42 balls dripped with maturity as he took RCB home in a winner-takes-all clash against Gujarat Titans (GT) at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.

Virat was adjudged the Player of the Match (POTM) for his match-winning knock. He became the second-oldest (37 years and 207 days) player to win a Player of the Match honour in an IPL final, with former RCB captain Anil Kumble being the oldest (38 years and 219 days).

RCB's head coach, Andy Flower, paid an emotional tribute to Virat as the entire squad and coaching staff sat together in a changing room one last time this season. Flower heaped praise on Virat's tendency to lock eyes with the opposition and put himself "on the line" irrespective of the circumstances.

"Virat, I know you get a lot of attention and quite rightly. But I don't want to downplay that because you are the heartbeat of this dressing room," said Flower in a video shared by RCB across social media platforms. "The courage that you continually show, to go out there, put yourself on the line, and take on high-quality opposition, is a bloody great role modelling for all of us."

“𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘢 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘵𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘯 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘥𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘴𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘳𝘰𝘰𝘮”: Andy Flower to Virat Kohli ❤️

Coach Andy uncut. From highlighting top performances, to wishing the young guns. Here’s a special from Andy’s dressing room talk. 🎥😇🤩

Thank you, Coach! 🫡

To be… pic.twitter.com/QHGI6xCmLP

— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) June 1, 2026

Andy Flower adds another feather to his illustrious coaching career

Andy Flower is one of the most successful coaches in modern cricketing history. The former Zimbabwe skipper guided RCB to their second consecutive IPL title. He was appointed in August 2023 for a three-year term after RCB failed to make the playoffs that season for the first time in four years.

The former left-handed batter coached England to their maiden ICC Men's T20 World Cup title in 2010 in the Caribbean. He also guided Multan Sultans to a PSL title in 2021, Trent Rockets to their first-ever men's Hundred title in 2022 and Gulf Giants to their maiden ILT20 title in 2023. St. Lucia Kings made it to the finals of the Caribbean Premier League (CPL) twice under his guidance.