Royal Challengers Bangalore and their captain Virat Kohli endured a night to forget in their return to IPL 2021. The RCB batting order faltered and suffered a dramatic collapse against KKR after the Powerplay. With the likes of Andre Russell and Varun Chakravarthy bowling at their best, the batsmen failed to keep a grip on proceedings.
Captain Virat Kohli also lamented the dew factor in the game. He says that the team didn’t expect the dew to come into play so early in the game which explains how the entire batting unit got bundled out for just 92 runs on the board.
In the post-match presentation ceremony, skipper Kohli also said that the lack of solid partnerships also hurt the side tremendously. “It was important to get a good partnership. We didn’t expect that much dew to kick in that early. From 42 for 1, we lost 5 wickets for 20-odd.”
With a knock of 22 runs, Devdutt Padikkal was the top-scorer for the side. Everything seemed to be going well during the second wicket stand between him and KS Bharat before Padikkal seemed to almost throw away his wicket and all hell went loose. The experienced batsmen in Glenn Maxwell and AB De Villiers also seemed clueless during the match.
Despite starting the season well, Virat Kohli admits that this match serves as a wake-up call and that the side needs to pull up their socks as IPL 2021 enters its business end. RCB are chasing their maiden IPL trophy this season and Kohli will strive to deliver it before signing off as captain of the franchise, an announcement he made on September 19.
“It was a bit of a wake-up call, might as well have this at the start of the second leg so that we know what we should work on. You can make the argument that we were rusty but as professionals, you’re expected to turn up and adjust. Sometimes it can take you a game, I hope not two, to get into the tournament, you have to stay with the eight-ball, if you’re not, the other teams will be all over you.”
The RCB captain also heaped praise on KKR spinner Varun Chakravarthy who troubled the batsmen with his bowling. The mystery spinner finished with figures of 3/13 in his four overs and got rid of Glenn Maxwell, Wanindu Hasaranga, and Sachin Baby.
“Pretty good from Varun, he’s going to be a key factor when he plays for India. It’s great guys who’ve got the opportunity to play at the international level. He’s someone who is going to play in the near future for India, it’s a great sign,” concluded Kohli.
