Former Indian opener Ambati Rayudu showered praise on RCB’s veteran Virat Kohli after the franchise registered a six-wicket win against Kolkata Knight Riders at Raipur on Wednesday. Rayudu praised Kohli for not only adapting his T20 batting according to modern needs, but also moving ahead of time.
After Jacob Bethell was dismissed early, Kohli added 92 runs off 59 balls for the second wicket with Devdutt Padikkal. Kohli scored a majestic knock of 105 runs off just 60 balls in the run chase of 193, which is his ninth IPL century. The talismanic batter scored 11 fours and three sixes in his match-winning innings and was awarded Player of the Match.
The veteran also became the fastest batter to reach the milestone of 14000 T20 runs in his career during this knock.
Ambati Rayudu said on ESPN Cricinfo, “He is going for it every ball. In his initial years, he did not have to do because the game was quite different. Now, he has not only caught up with the times, but he is moving ahead of time, especially in the powerplay. He is playing well above par in any wicket or condition. That’s made him so successful in the last couple of years.
“If you look at his batting, there is not much risk attached to it. Even though he’s striking at such high strike rates, it’s very low-risk batting and that shows his class and skill,” Rayudu added.
On the other hand, former New Zealand fast bowler Mitchell McClenaghan pointed out that Kohli celebrated getting off the mark more than reaching his century.
He said in the same discussion, “He celebrated more getting that first run than he did after getting a hundred. Tonight was set up for him to bat through the innings and get the job done in tricky conditions. He paced the innings nicely, had a good partnership with Padikkal. He needed that. We always knew that after two low scores, he was going to come in and bat. Just to get that sheer weight of runs behind him again, he’ll go bananas in the next game I am sure.”
RCB will next take on Punjab Kings at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association Stadium, Dharamsala, on Sunday.
