That Super Over Where I Had To Strike, Freed Me Up: Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli, Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper, hailed his sides’ 37-run win over Chennai Super Kings [CSK] as one of their most complete performances thus far in the Dream11 IPL.

Batting first, RCB– as Kohli admitted in the post-match interview-got themselves into a bit of a hole after they lost the cream of their top-order with just 69 runs on the board.

But, Kohli revealed that by the second time-out, he had assessed the pitch really well and the discussion during the break was to get close to the 150-mark. RCB eventually got more than that thanks to a late assault by Virat backed by a handy cameo by Shivam Dube.

Kohli’s knock was backed by a brilliant all-round effort with the ball by the Challengers and another substandard display by CSK batsmen. The RCB skipper was naturally happy after his side grabbed two crucial points but also asserted to continue with the good work with two back-t0-back games coming up.

”It was one of our most complete performances. We got into a bit of a tricky position in the first half. From there on, we pushed forward. We spoke during the second timeout (with the bat) that 140-150 would be good. Ended up getting more than that. It was a tricky pitch. Really pleased to get two points. We have back-to-back games coming up, so important to build momentum,” Virat Kohli said.

 

‘It’s about understanding the conditions and respecting the game’- Virat Kohli

Virat Kohli, who had scored his first 44 runs in 35 balls, proceeded to rack up the next 46 in a mere 17 balls to help RCB post an eventual match-winning total of 4-169 in 2o overs.

Kohli once again displayed his ability to change gears during a T20 innings. Commenting on his knock, the charismatic batsman said it was all about assessing the conditions before subtly shifting gears at the backend, something he has learned during the course of his career.

Kohli had started his 2020 IPL with a rare bad patch as he managed 14, 3, and 1 in his first three innings. But since then the RCB skipper has restored normalcy, with two match-winning 50-plus scores in the last three. Kohli admitted that the boundary that he hit in the Super-Over freed him up and he hasn’t looked behind since then.

”It’s about understanding the conditions and respecting the game. Instead of trying to hit every ball into the second tier of the stadium. Having played so much cricket, especially T20 cricket, I have learned that if you are set at the death, you can capitalize. Before that, I was trying to do too much. If you think too much about responsibility, you get burdened. That Super Over where I had to strike, else we would have lost, freed me up. Training all these days also helped,” Kohli signed off.

Also Read- ‘This was a team that fought’: Virender Sehwag Criticises CSK After Loss To RCB, Sympathises With Fans