17th edition of the IPL, and Virat Kohli continues to carry the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB). Having scored 45% of the total team runs and carried his bat, the superstar batter was once again let down by other batters in the lineup. Despite having star batters like Glenn Maxwell, Faf du Plessis, and Cameron Green, it was only Kohli who stood.
Although Dinesh Karthik, Green, and Maxwell played valuable cameos, they failed to build big partnerships with him, while Faf, Rajat Patidar, and Anuj Rawat failed to make a mark. After the RCB vs KKR match, Sunil Gavaskar criticized other RCB batters for not providing ample support to Kohli.
“Virat Kohli would’ve definitely scored 120 had he gotten support from his teammates. How much will Kohli do on his own? This is a team sport, not a single man game,” he said while talking with Star Sports.
Virat Kohli gets the orange cap, but not the win
The former RCB skipper ended up as the match’s top-scorer (83*) and was handed the orange cap after the end of the first inning. But, as the batter had said after he was awarded the ‘Player of the Match’ award against the Punjab Kings, he doesn’t play for achievement, stats, or numbers.
Having lost two of their three matches, it’ll be the elusive IPL trophy that’ll be on his mind rather than dreams of winning the orange cap or reaching new milestones. Kohli’s focus will now shift to their next fixture against the Lucknow Super Giants on April 2, which will be their last home game of the first leg.