Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batting superstar Virat Kohli once again launched an attack on his strike rate critics after scoring against the Sam Curran-led Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the 58th match of the Indian Premier League 2024 (IPL 2024). ) had played a fantastic innings. on Thursday, May 9, at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium in Dharamsala.
Virat Kohli provided stability for Team RCB after the game got off to a shaky start and lost two wickets. He stood firmly in the middle and tried to attack the bowlers, which brought him great success.
Kohli was well supported by the Punjab Kings fielders as they gave the batsman two lifelines after he dropped his catch. The 35-year-old seemed in no mood to stop and played an attacking brand of cricket throughout his innings.
Virat Kohli started the 90s by hitting a four and a six on Arshdeep Singh and he tried to reach the three-figure mark with a boundary. However, one of his shots did not land well and he was caught by Rilee Rossouw in the 18th over, leaving him eight runs short of a century. Kohli ended his innings with 92 runs off 47 balls, with 7 fours and 6 sixes, and he batted at a strike rate of 195.74.
Virat Kohli also achieved several milestones during his sensational innings against the Punjab Kings. He became the first player to cross the 600-run mark in IPL 2024 and overall, this was the fourth time he achieved this feat in the history of the tournament. He also became the first player in IPL history to score over 1000 runs against three teams in an IPL season.
I just focused on taking the momentum forward – Virat Kohli
During the mid-innings break, Virat Kohli once again lashed out at his strike rate critics and said that he needs to keep his strike rate high throughout the innings. Kohli said:
“It was important for me to maintain the strike rate throughout the inning (laughs). I just focused on keeping the momentum moving forward. There was a difficult phase when Rajat dropped out and there was a break due to rain and hail. We had to rebuild for 8-10 balls when the base was set and Cam had a few boundaries away.
Talking about the pitch, Virat Kohli said that it was quite dry and it felt like the wicket was split in two. Virat Kohli explained:
“The ground was pretty dry and there was some grass. As you have seen, Faf and I have been slowed down by a lack of pace off the pitch. There was a two-tier feel with the new ball, which I think is great. “It gives our bowlers an opportunity to go on the offensive early and take advantage of the momentum out there.
Virat Kohli also said that the target of over 230 is a par score in Dharamsala. He said:
“We thought anything over 230 would be a good overall result here. That was the only setting. That was a hell of an over from Harshal in the last over, otherwise we would have been at 250+.”
Virat Kohli was also asked to give his opinion on PBKS debutant Vidwath Kaverappa, who took two wickets in the game. Kohli explained:
“It is difficult to analyze someone in a game (talking about Kaverappa). He has momentum in his hand. That’s the thing, when you play your first game and people haven’t played against you yet – you get away scot-free. You try to figure it out.’ We praise him for variations and things like that – but after the three overs, when he came in for the fourth time, we knew the swing was there and then we went after him.