Virat Kohli waged almost a lone battle as Royal Challengers Bengaluru scored 183/3 against Rajasthan Royals in Jaipur on Saturday. Virat Kohli scored 113* off 72 balls at a strike-rate of 156.94. RR surpassed the target in 19.1 overs with Jos Buttler scoring an unbeaten 100 off 58 balls (strike-rate 172.41). Virat Kohli reached the triple-digit figure mark in 67 balls – the joint slowest IPL ton ever. Social media was abuzz with Virat Kohli playing such a ‘slow’ knock.
Former Indian cricket team star batter Virender Sehwag was asked about Kohli’s knock during the mid-innings break.
“I think RCB are 20 runs short. If I talk about Virat Kohli, the innings has been good. But the guys who had to accompany him, Glenn Maxwell, Cameroon Green, Dinesh Karthik did not come to bat, there was no Mahipal Lomror. Nobody was there at the end who could end. However, Virat Kohli’s strike-rate could have gone up. Because when you hit 50 off 39 balls, then the strike-rate goes up, nears 200 even. But the other batters did not do anything. All the pressure was on Kohli,” Virender Sehwag said on Cricbuzz.
“He is in form. That’s his role that he will stay till the end. The other batters who have been picked by paying so much money, they should prove their mettle. Like Maxwell. But nobody did anything today.”
Talking about the century, Kohli showed superb improvisation, from his wrist-rolled pulls, powerful swat flicks to steer through third man as he remained unbeaten on 113 off 72 balls and has now scored 38 percent of RCB’s total runs so far.
Kohli smashed 12 fours and four sixes and barring the assistance received from his skipper Faf Du Plessis (44 from 33 balls; 2×4, 2×6), he did not get any support from the other batters.
After reaching his fifty in 39 balls, Kohli stepped up well and took just 28 balls for his next fifty as he reached the milestone with a single off Nandre Burger in the penultimate over.
Put in, RCB had their best ever start in this IPL when Kohli and Du Plessis saw through the power play for the first time this season in a 125-run opening partnership.
The duo put on a steady 53-run inside the power play, thanks to a brilliant over by Ashwin who conceded just three runs in the fifth over to pull them back.
Their pace spearhead Trent Boult bowled short and Kohli pulled them to get into the zone, while Nandre Burger was wayward and leaked 26 runs from his two overs inside the power play.
With PTI inputs
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