The one positive aspect of RCB’s miserable performance against KKR on Friday, March 29, was Virat Kohli’s half-century.
In the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) lost disastrously by seven wickets to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Friday, March 29. This was the team’s second loss in three games.
Faf du Plessis, the captain of RCB, was dismissed in the second over after KKR won the toss and chose to bowl first. Cameron Green and Virat Kohli had a partnership of 65 runs till the latter left for 33. Despite being dropped twice, 28-year-old Glenn Maxwell was unable to make KKR pay for it. After scoring three runs apiece, Rajat Patidar and Anuj Rawat were removed from the game, and Dinesh Karthik finished the innings with an undefeated 20 runs off of eight balls. With his bat in hand, Kohli scored 83 runs off of 59 balls to record his second consecutive half-century. During the mid-innings break, Green also gave him the Orange Cap.
Also Read: In a humorous video that goes viral, Virat Kohli displays his playful side while receiving an orange cap.
After 20 overs, RCB’s innings ended at 182/6. Even though the KKR pacers produced several slower balls that were rather striking, the total seemed a little low at a ground where defense is quite challenging. With 19 balls remaining and seven wickets remaining, the visitors eventually breezed through the chase.
Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar criticized the RCB hitters for failing to give Kohli enough support following the one-sided game.
“You tell me how much Kohli will do alone – someone should accompany him, If someone had supported him today, he would definitely have scored 120 instead of 83, so this is team sport not a single man game, he didn’t get any support today,” Gavaskar told Star Sports.
In the IPL, Virat Kohli surpasses MS Dhoni’s record for sixes.
Throughout his tenacious innings, Kohli smacked four fours and as many sixes. The Delhi batsman passed MS Dhoni’s record of 239 IPL sixes with his third six. With 241 maximums to his credit, Kohli is now ranked fourth among batsmen with the most sixes in the Indian Premier League. Chris Gayle (357), Rohit Sharma (261), and AB de Villiers (251) hold the first three positions.
Returning to the match, Sunil Narine emerged victorious with a brilliant 22-ball 47, taking one wicket along the way. He was named Player of the Match. While KKR captain Shreyas Iyer was still undefeated at 39 off 24 balls, Venkatesh Iyer amassed a lovely half-century.
On Tuesday, April 2, RCB will play the Lucknow Super Giants at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in an attempt to recover. The next day, in Visakhapatnam, KKR—who have won both of their matches thus far—will play Delhi Capitals.
See Also: IPL 2024: Three Adjustments Bengaluru’s Royal Challengers Should Make to Return to Winning
