RCB into the IPL 2025 Final, MI v PBKS Preview, England crush Zimbabwe & Gill to captain India

In this episode of the show, Binksy, Raj, Baldy and Stu discuss an eventful couple of weeks, which have seen RCB win their way to the IPL final, England demolish Zimbabwe, Karun Nair strengthen his case for a Test recall, Shubman Gill named India Test captain and Copilot names its favourite podcast host.

We start by talking about IPL 2025's most recent game, which saw the Mumbai Indians advance, ending Gujarat Titans' season in the process. Sai Sudharsan was brilliant once again, but ultimately it was another stunning delivery from Jasprit Bumrah that turned the match. We also discuss Royal Challengers Bengaluru's first appearance in a final since 2016, with Josh Hazlewood and Virat Kohli leading the way with ball and bat respectively. But will they face Mumbai or the Punjab Kings in the big dance?

Next we head to England to discuss their recent victory against Zimbabwe. Was it the perfect way to start the summer? Is Shoaib Bashir the answer? Is there a way in for Jacob Bethell after Ollie Pope's huge hundred? And how many references can we make to songs by Sam Cook?

India named their Test squad to face England, and it is filled with stars but has a very new era feel to it thanks to the retirements of Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma. Karun Nair's made a strong case for inclusion against the Lions, Sai Sudharsan's New Zealand-based fan club is growing and Shubman Gill has been named captain.

To round out the show, there's brief mention of the World Test Championship Final build up (full preview coming next week) and the Black Caps' coaching search, which looks set to be finalised very soon.

We'll be back in your feed next week to review the IPL final, preview the WTC and any other cricket news that catches our eyes. Until then please take the time to give us a like, follow, share or subscribe on all our channels (@toporderpod on Twitter & Facebook, and @thetoporderpodcast on Instagram & YouTube) and a (5-Star!) review at your favourite podcast provider, or tell a friend to download. It really helps others find the show and is the best thing you can do to support us. You can also find all our written content, including our Hall of Fame series, at our website.

You can also dip back into our guest episodes - including conversations with Mike Hesson, Shane Bond and Mike Hussey, current players such as Matt Henry, Sophie Devine and Ish Sodhi, coaches Gary Stead, Jeetan Patel and Luke Wright, as well as Barry Richards, Frankie Mackay, Bharat Sundaresan and many more fascinating people from all across the cricketing world. And if you'd like to reach out to us with feedback, questions or guest suggestions, get in touch at [email protected].

Thanks for listening.

0:00 Intro
1:10 IPL knockouts - Mumbai survive, GT out!
9:00 RCB into the final after demolishing Punjab
13:45 MI v PBKS - who will face RCB in the final?
20:40 England v Zimbabwe - did England tick all the boxes?
28:20 The Shoaib Bashir conundrum
43:50 India A v England Lions - Karun Nair staking a claim & England's depth
49:30 India's potential Test XI
51:25 Shubman Gill named India's Test captain as they start a new era
57:10 World Test Championship Final and NZ coaching update