Krunal Pandya was an integral part of the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) setup this season that succesfully defended their Indian Premier League (IPL) title. For both Pandya and RCB, there were significant milestones – RCB became just the third team to have won consecutive IPL titles, after famously having waited 17 years to win their first last season. For Pandya, this was the fifth time he had won the title, having won it four times in the past with the Mumbai Indians. It was also the second time he didn’t have his brother Hardik with him on the champions’ podium, with the latter instead having a forgettable season as captain of MI. Krunal and Hardik famously share a close relationship that has been seen on the cricket field a number of times in the IPL and with the Indian team. “Obviously, we have played together,” said Krunal in an interview with the Times of India. “We have always discussed cricket in terms of tactical, technical stuff which always helps. It has always been a good conversation, a very healthy conversation about cricket and how we can get better. When you have your brother also playing the same sport, it always helps each other. And, I mean, 10 trophies in the Pandya household is not a bad number to have. God’s been kind.” Hardik was part of the MI squad that won their second IPL title in 2015 while Krunal made his first appearance for the side in 2016. The brothers then were an integral part of the MI sides that won the title in 2017, 2019 and 2020. While Krunal stayed with MI for one more season, Hardik left to become captain of the newly formed Gujarat Titans and led them to the trophy in their very first season. He then led them to the final the next year before returning to MI as captain, a move that was highly unpopular in his first season back. While he had a better time of it last season in which MI made it to the playoffs, the five-time champions finished second-last on the league table this year. Hardik is now set to lose captaincy of MI. Krunal, meanwhile, spent three seasons with the Lucknow Super Giants after leaving MI post the 2021 season. He joined RCB in 2025 and remarkably was crucial to their runs to the title in both the seasons that he has been there thus far. With these wins, both Krunal and Hardik have now won the IPL five times each.
Krunal on relationship with Hardik: ‘When your brother also plays same sport…’
