‘Please just stop doing that’: Why Virat Kohli texted AB de Villiers to avoid ‘Ee Sala Cup Namde’ chant for IPL 2025 | Ipl News

As the IPL 2025 season approaches, South Africa batting legend AB de Villiers has revealed that he received a stern message from his long-time Royal Challengers Bengaluru teammate Virat Kohli not to utter the franchise’s famous slogan of hope and anticipation, ‘Ee Sala Cup Namde’, anywhere in public.
First raised as promotional material ahead of an IPL season seven years ago, the chant, from the perspective of RCB fans, has not tilted the team’s fortunes in converting an IPL title. While they finished runners-up in 2009, 2011 and 2016, RCB, alongside the Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings, remain the only three sides since the league’s inception in 2008 to not earn the IPL trophy.
Hope has turned to exhaustion and frustration and de Villiers said that he has received a direct message from RCB’s former captain Kohli to stay away from the ‘This year the cup will be ours’ chant. “I honestly, said those words the other day and I got a direct message from Virat, and he said, please just stop doing that now. So I got into a bit of trouble. But to be fair, I am exhausted saying it all the time, that the trophy is coming this season. Guys, it is the IPL, 10 world-class teams could possibly even win a World Cup, never mind the IPL. It is an incredibly difficult tournament to win,” said de Villiers on the Star Sports Press Room show.
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“There are so many factors that play a role from travelling, different teams, different strategies, and injuries. So many things change throughout the season, but it is the team that manages to find a way to keep that fuel in the tank for the back end of the tournament that generally comes out on top. The teams that make their home advantage count, we see them come out on top. So I hope that this is the year, the 18th season, number 18 on the back. I will be there to lift that trophy with Virat if it happens,” de Villiers, who represented RCB from 2011-21, added.
RCB has reached the Playoffs in four of the last five seasons without making it to the final in any of those editions. The Rajat Patidar-led outfit will hope that it is ‘Ee Sala Cup Namdu’ (This year the cup is ours) when they open their campaign against Kolkata Knight Riders on Saturday.