Follow UsIt was a masterclass in run-chase form Virat Kohli after Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) were reduced to 26/3 in a chase of 163 runs as the former RCB skipper maneuvered it with some precision. With Krunal Pandya playing his best IPL knock of all time, Kohli had the time to play his natural game and take the match to the final overs. So much so that RCB won the game with nine balls to spare.
“It was a top win, especially looking at the surface,” Kohli, who crossed Suryakumar Yadav to become the Orange Cap holder in the IPL 2025. “We saw a few games here and this wicket played out differently than those. Whenever there's a chase on, I keep checking with the dugout, whether we're on course, my role, and what kind of innings I need to play.
“We were under pressure, 3 for 25-26, and then Krunal and I got a century partnership. He was outstanding today with the bat; he can make that impact and we were just waiting for him to come into this tournament with the bat as well. And today was his day completely, and he was brilliant.”
Explaining his modus operandi on such a wicket where balls were not easily coming onto the bat, Kohli said, “Look at the total on the board, the conditions, the bowlers who are due to bowl, who are the bowlers who are going to be hard to get away. I try to make sure my singles and doubles don't stop, and then you keep getting the odd boundary in between, so the game doesn't stagnate.
“That's always been my focus, keep working on rotating the strike. People are forgetting the importance of partnerships or going deep into the innings in T20s and this year your'e seeing that you can't just come out and tee off from ball one. You need professionalism to read the situation and try to get into a position where you can start dominating the bowlers. It won't come easily on a slow pitch if you don't know how to rotate the strike. So that's pretty much my method. We've communicated beautifully, Krunal kept telling me to stay while he took his chances.”
While RCB's batting has been terrific this season, their bowling, led by Josh Hazlewood and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, has been a massive differentiator. While Hazlewood sits at the top of the wicket-takers list with 18 wickets, Bhuvneshwar Kumar and Krunal Pandya have combined to take 25 wickets so far.
“We have the extra power in Tim David, there's Jitesh as well. That firepower at the back end of the innings helps you. And now Romario as well. Hazlewood and Bhuvi are world-class bowlers; there's a reason why Josh has the Purple Cap. Krunal was outstanding in the way he varied his pace. Suyash has been our dark horse, even if he doesn't have the wickets. Our spinners keep attacking in the middle overs,” Kohli added.