Ajay Jadeja expressed that Virat Kohli might have slowed down seeing RCB’s batters crumble against SRH bowlers and wanted to stabilise the run rate.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) secured a convincing 35-run victory against the SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Thursday. However, Virat Kohli’s knock of 51 runs off 43 balls has sparked debate among cricket pundits.
While Kohli anchored the innings, his scoring pace outside the powerplay (19 runs off 25 balls) raised eyebrows. Former Indian cricketer Ajay Jadeja addressed this on Jio Cinema after the match, questioning the team’s batting strategy.
“Talking about Kohli’s consistency is like explaining the existence of the sun. The moment the powerplay ended, he slowed down. It could be because RCB lost two wickets, maybe. Sometimes, it looks as if RCB are very adamant about their roles. DK [Dinesh Karthik] will always come out at the end. And in doing that, RCB pulled the handbrake.” Jadeja suggested that the quick dismissals of RCB’s openers, Faf du Plessis and Will Jacks, might have influenced Kohli’s approach.
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Significantly, this is not the first time Kohli’s batting tempo in the IPL has been under scrutiny. Critics have argued that he needs to adapt his style to the demands of T20 cricket, where a more aggressive approach is often necessary.
Former Indian pacer RP Singh also opined that Kohli should have put on the gear; however, he also acknowledged his game awareness of giving a strike to Patidar, who was firing at that moment. “He (Kohli) has transformed himself inside the powerplay. We don’t usually get to see such shots from him anymore. Usually he isn’t this slow; there were almost 24–25 balls when a single boundary wasn’t scored, which could have had a strong impact, but the good thing was he held one end, allowing Rajat Patidar to get the job done,” said Singh.
While the debate continues on Kohli’s strike rate, he remains the orange cap holder of the tournament with 430 runs in his nine innings and a strike rate of 145.76. He will be next seen playing against the Gujarat Titans on April 28th.
Last Updated on April 26, 2024
