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Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batter Virat Kohli hit back at his critics on Sunday following his team’s nine-wicket win over Gujarat Titans (GT) in an IPL 2024 match in Ahmedabad. Kohli, who has been criticised for his underwhelming strike-rate in the ongoing tournament, scored 70 off 44 balls to guide RCB over the finish line .
Against Gujarat, Kohli registered a strike-rate of 159.09. Earlier this season, during a match against Rajasthan Royals (RR), Kohli hit the joint-slowest century in the IPL, getting to the milestone in 67 balls. During his knock on Sunday, the veteran hit six fours and three sixes.
The likes of Sunil Gavaskar had questioned his lack of intent against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Thursday when he made 51 off 43 balls. His knock was in stark contrast to Rajat Patidar’s uber aggressive 50 off 20 balls.
“Not really, all the people who talk about strike-rates and me not playing spin well are the ones talking about these things (numbers). For me, it’s about winning the games for the team and there’s a reason why you’ve done it for 15 years, you’ve done this day in and day out, you’ve won games for your teams, I’m not quite sure that if you haven’t been in that situation yourself, to sit and talk about the game from the box.
“For me, people can talk about their assumptions day in and day out, but those who have done day in and day out, they know what’s happening and it’s a kind of muscle memory for me now,” Kohli said after the match.
Impact Shorts
More ShortsDespite back-to-back wins, RCB are languishing at the bottom of the table with three wins in 10 games.
““We wanted to play more for our self respect, we want to play for the fans who have backed us, we know we haven’t played up to the standards required (so far in the tournament), we know we can do a lot more better and it’s something which we’ll try and do,” he said.
Talking about Jacks stunning hundred, he said, “Phenomenal, initially when he came to bat, he was annoyed that he wasn’t able to strike the ball as he wanted to. The only talk was for him to stay calm.
“We know how explosive he can be when he gets going. The over from Mohit was the game changer, I was just happy to stay around and watch him go.
“I thought we would win in 19 overs, but to do it in 16 was absolutely brilliant. The wicket did start to get better as the first innings wore on, the ball was coming nicely onto the bat. We never dropped below ten an over through the innings.”
Kohli’s knock on Sunday took him to 500 runs this season , becoming the first batter to get to that mark this year.
Next up, RCB will once again face GT in the reverse fixture at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru on Saturday (4 May).
With PTI inputs
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