Lot of people think my T20 cricket is declining: Virat Kohli on 7th IPL hundred
Bengaluru: Virat Kohli strongly reacted to the outside noise that his T20 cricket is declining by hitting back-to-back hundreds in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023.
Kohli also broke Chris Gayle’s record for most IPL hundreds with his seventh in the history of the tournament. Kohli also became the only third batter to hit back-to-back hundreds in IPL after Shikhar Dhawan and Jos Buttler. With his second successive hundred in IPL 2023, Kohli also recorded 600-plus runs for a third time in the tournament having last achieved the feat in 2013 and 2016. Only KL Rahul has done it four times (2018, 2020, 2021 and 2022).
“I felt great. Lot of people think that my T20 cricket is declining, I don’t think so. I look to hit gaps and then the big ones towards the end. You have to read situations and rise up to the situations. I feel really good with my game at the moment,” Kohli told the broadcaster in the mid-innings interview.
Kohli’s unbeaten century knock powered RCB to 197 for the lose of five wickets. RCB got off to a flying start, with Kohli and Faf du Plessis stitching a crucial 67-run opening partnership before GT started to tighten the screws after the powerplay. GT bowlers controlled the middle overs, but Kohli continued to lead RCB from front.
Kohli said that the total is sufficient for RCB to win the match and reach the IPL 2023 playoffs, adding that it was up to the bowlers to execute the plans.
“We pretty much pulled things back towards the end. Close to 200 is a winnable score for me. It’s upon the bowlers to execute. Spin wasn’t easy to get away. There’s enough on this pitch for our bowlers. What matters is to stay in the present,” Kohli said.
Kohli’s innings, proved futile for the RCB as Shubman Gill’s terrific knock earned Titans their tenth win of the campaign, as they finished comfortably at the top of the table with 20 points. This is GT’s second-successive first-place finish in the league stage.
