Virat Kohli-inspired Royal Challengers Bangalore to inflict a fifth straight loss for Delhi Capitals in the Indian Premier League on Saturday. Kohli smashed 50 off 34 deliveries to guide hosts Bangalore to 174-6, a total their bowlers defended by restricting Delhi to 151/9.
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The in-form Kohli struck his third half-century of the season before other batters including skipper Faf du Plessis (22), Mahipal Lomror (26), Glenn Maxwell (24) and Shahbaz Ahmed (20 not out) boosted the total on a relatively slow M Chinnaswamy pitch pitch.
Just when Kohli was looking to accelerate, the Indian batter failed to clear the longer mid-wicket boundary and holed out to a juicy full-toss bowled by Lalit Yadav in the 11th over.
Talking about the innings that earned him the player of the match, Kohli said in the post-match ceremony, “I was quite disappointed that I got out to a full toss. I have been playing really well. I wanted to make sure that after fifty, I was targeting 30-35 runs off the next ten balls. That’s how I play. That would have helped us get past 200.”
“One thing I mentioned to the guys in the change room that 175 was enough on this pitch. It slowed down considerably when the spinners came on. Even the balls to hit off the back foot off Kuldeep were holding up unlike the other games we played.We did well to get to that score and had the belief it was enough,” he added.
The Kohli-du Plessis partnership had got things rolling quickly, hitting 33 runs in four overs. Kohli smashed Anrich Nortje for back-to-back boundaries in the opening over. He also attacked Mustafizur Rahman in the tenth over, scoring a boundary and a six against him. Overall, Kohli smashed six fours and one six in his 34-ball knock as he put on key partnerships including an opening stand of 42 with Du Plessis.
Answering a question about a shot he played just like he did against Australia’s James Faulkner in the T20 World Cup in 2016, he said “When I have played my best cricket, those are the balls I’ve put away consistently (length balls on the up). That helps me to put pressure on the bowlers. When I put away their best balls, they are going to try to do something else. I back myself to hit the best bowlers in the opposition. That is how I motivate myself.”
After being involved in the thriller against Lucknow Super Giants, where they lost by 1 wicket and a massive 81-run defeat courtesy an all-round show by Kolkata Knight Riders’s Shardul Thakur, RCB registered a comeback win to stay afloat in the points table.
“Very happy to get two points. We kind of let it slip away last two games,” said Kohli.
RCB next face Chennai Super Kings on Monday.