Bengaluru: Star player Virat Kohli was the standout performer in Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s thrilling match against Gujarat Titans at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. Kohli scored 81 runs off 44 balls, helping the team secure a five-wicket victory. With this performance, he hit eight fours and became the first player in IPL history to reach 800 boundaries.
Additionally, Kohli made history as the third cricketer, following Chris Gayle and Rohit Sharma, to hit 300 sixes in the IPL.
Kohli Praises Padikkal Post-Match
In pursuit of 206 runs, RCB lost Jacob Bethell early on. The England international, who filled in for the injured Phil Salt, managed 14 runs before being dismissed. Devdutt Padikkal then came to the crease and teamed up with Kohli, forging a significant partnership of 117 runs that shifted the momentum in RCB’s favor. Padikkal scored 55 runs off 27 balls, with his explosive batting in the powerplay drawing praise from Kohli, who was later named Player of the Match.
In his post-match remarks, Kohli credited Padikkal’s innings as pivotal, stating, “Padikkal has done this twice this season. This is quite rare, to be honest. His innings was the clear difference. I was trying to be in the game. That partnership was the game-changer.”
He also acknowledged the bowlers for their vital contributions, noting that Gujarat Titans seemed poised to score around 230 runs at one point. “Our bowlers did a magnificent job. The spinners were not able to get the grip. Once you get hold of conditions, you back yourself. The message was very clear. We had to go for it. We didn’t have any doubts. The body language comes from the belief. We have guys who can hurt bowlers. We have the cricket smarts of Krunal. You can see it in his bowling. The combination gives us a lot of confidence,” Kohli added.
