Virat Kohli was in the thick of things during Royal Challengers Bengaluru's IPL 2024 match against Gujarat Titans on Saturday. Before the math even started, Kohli was criticized by Sunil Gavaskar for some strong comments about cricket pundits. Then, as RCB chased a low total of 148, Virat Kohli scored 42 off just 27 balls to help his team win. He was also involved in an astonishing fielding effort where he edged out Shahrukh Khan of GT. The effort was so good that even Kohli's RCB teammate Cameron Green was shocked.
It happened when Rahul Tewatia sent back Shahrukh who was trying to steal a single. But Kohli picked up the ball with astonishing speed and his one-handed delivery hit the stumps.
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Royal Challengers Bengaluru half-pressed the self-destruct button but a blazing fifty from captain Faf du Plessis had enough torque to take them to a four-wicket over Gujarat Titans in their IPL match here on Saturday.
Du Plessis (64, 23b, 10×4, 3×6) and Kohli (42, 27b, 2×4, 4×6), who added 92 runs in just 35 balls for the opening wicket, were in prime touch as Royal Challengers got past a weak target of 148. , braving some nervous moments, most of them their own creation.
The win also lifted RCB to seventh place on the table with eight points from eleven matches, and kept their mathematical chances of making the play-offs alive.
Before RCB batsmen joined the party, their bowlers came up with an immaculate effort on a supporting pitch to bowl GT to a modest 147.
There were some good partnerships – 61 between David Miller and Shahrukh Khan and 44 by Rahul Tewatia and Rashid Khan – but the Titans missed that one big innings or a stand that could have given them a firmer grip on the match.
In fact, they looked distinctly unable to accelerate even in the Power Play as their top-order batters struggled against RCB pacers, Mohammed Siraj (2/29) and Yash Dayal (2/21), who maintained a beautiful length.
That GT managed to hit just two fours in Power Play was proof enough of their struggles and the accuracy of RCB bowlers.
With PTI inputs
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