IPL 2022: Virat Kohli Should Bat At No.3 For RCB: Opines Aakash Chopra

Cricketer-turned-commentator Aakash Chopra wants star Indian batter Virat Kohli to bat at the No.3 position for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in IPL 2022.

Kohli has batted at the No.3 slot in 85 of his 199 innings while he has opened the innings for the franchise in 76 instances.

Where should Virat Kohli bat for RCB in IPL 2022?

RCB will have the experience of Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell and Indian wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik in the middle-order. However, the franchise will be without the services of their talisman AB de Villiers as the former South African player announced his retirement from all formats of the game in November 2021.

There’s no AB de Villiers for RCB this season: Aakash Chopra explains why Virat Kohli should bat at No.3

Chopra said that Kohli should bat at No.3 given the absence of de Villiers from RCB’s batting order and expects the former RCB skipper to bat at least till the 15th over. Chopra also said that Dinesh Karthik’s presence won’t add enough energy to the RCB’s middle-order as it used to during de Villiers’ era.

“Last year when Kohli was opening the batting, a game of musical chairs was being played for the No. 3 spot. They stopped at Srikar Bharat at the end but then sent him at No. 4 too. We’ve seen this a lot in RCB’s recent history that they shuffle the batting order a lot but if you can identify the crucial positions beforehand [it would be better],” Chopra told ESPNcricinfo.

“Also, keep in mind there’s no AB de Villiers. When he was there, they were assured he would handle the situation from No. 4 or No. 5. Of course, you have Dinesh Karthik but he isn’t AB de Villiers. You will want Virat Kohli to take the game deep and stay at the pitch till the 14th or 15th over. So I’ll say Virat Kohli at 3,” he added. 

Kohli relinquished RCB’s captaincy at the conclusion of IPL 2021, the Bangalore outfit appointed former South Africa skipper Faf du Plessis as the new captain of the team.

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