IPL 2018: You Can't Always Rely On Virat Kohli & AB de Villiers: Moeen Ali

Moeen Ali, on Thursday, said that Royal Challengers Bangalore cannot rely too much on their talismanic duo Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers following the 14-run win over Sunrisers Hyderabad in the must-win clash.

De Villiers once again proved his worth by slamming 69 but it was Moeen who provided the innings with the much-needed impetus. Asked to bat first, the Royal Challengers were off to a poor start, losing Parthiv Patel and Virat Kohli cheaply. However, Moeen and de Villiers added 107 runs for the third wicket to lay the foundation for a good total. Moeen was finally dismissed after slamming 65 off just 34 balls.

Towards the end, Colin de Grandhomme (40 off 17) and Sarfraz Khan (22 off 8) played quickfire knocks to propel the Royal Challengers to a mammoth 218 for 6. In reply, the Sunrisers put up a good show but eventually fell short by 14 runs.

Moeen impressed with the ball too, dismissing the dangerous Alex Hales to put his side on top. Kane Williamson and Manish Pandey then kept the Sunrisers in hunt but the Virat Kohli & Co. held on to register the important win.

“It is obviously very important (to contribute). It is a massive momentum kind of game. We have to contribute to go further and potentially get through (to the playoffs). You can’t always rely on two guys, two amazing players who will do their bit but we have to sort of chip in and win games for the team as well,” said Moeen at the post-match press-conference.

Moeen further expressed his delight over regaining his form in the IPL.

“It was good. I feel like I have been playing well in the nets and practice. I wasn’t in great form coming here. It was nice to go out and express myself in the last game here, for the fans and team, for my own and team’s confidence in me as well so that we can keep going forward,” said Ali.

This was the England all-rounder’s only fourth game of the tournament in which he scored his maiden Indian Premier League half-century.

“It is great to be in the team and winning and when you win you always stick with the same formula and we are doing it now for the last three games and hopefully we can keep doing that.”

He went on to credit batting coach Gary Kirsten and batting talent development coach Trent Woodhill for his current form.

“Gary and Trent Woodhill… I have worked the most with them on my batting. I am trying to hit the ball and be consistent in hitting boundaries. They have really opened my game and I feel going further for England, it will help me become a better ODI player and improve my game,” concluded the all-rounder.