Virat Kohli could not have done much more to give his team a big opportunity – to get back to winning ways. On a tough M. Chinnaswamy track where the other batsmen struggled even to time their shots, the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) skipper looked a class apart.
Sent in to bat first by Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR), Brendon McCullum and Quinton de Kock gave Bangalore a solid start by adding 67 runs for the first wicket.
However, the duo could not score those runs at a quick pace. Bangalore then lost a handful of wickets in quick succession, before Kohli took the onus on himself.
The skipper waged a lone battle, scoring his 33rd IPL fifty. He remained unbeaten, scoring 68 off 44 – to ensure his side finish with a competitive total of 175 for four in 20 overs.
But in the end, his effort once again went in vain. Chris Lynn starred for the visitors, scoring a gritty 52-ball 62 and remained unbeaten to help his team cross the line in the last over.
Lynn received good support from Sunil Narine (27), Robin Uthappa (36) and Dinesh Karthik (23).
It was Bangalore’s fifth defeat in seven games this season. The latest defeat has very much put them on the verge of losing out on a playoff spot.
Speaking after the loss, Kohli was critical of his side’s fielding effort. He also said that the score was par and in fact more than they had anticipated at one point in the game.
“It’s a pretty surprising every time we bat. Looked better than it played (the track). 175 was a really good score, we were thinking of 165 at one stage after those wickets, so 10 was a bonus,” Kohli said after the match.
Bangalore’s poor fielding did not help their cause. Lynn was dropped by Murugan Ashwin on just seven which became the story for the rest of the innings. The Australian went on to play a match-winning knock.
Slamming the fielding, Kohli said his team deserved the loss.
“If we field like that, we don’t deserve to win. We need to be hard on ourselves and be more brave with the ball and in the field, we need to correct those things going forward,” Kohli said.
“All 11 of us need to come together and bring that excitement on the field. We don’t deserve to win if we field like that. We can’t afford to field like that and let singles go to boundaries. We’re just not good enough tonight,” he added.
With the season on the line, Virat Kohli urged his teammates to learn from their mistakes and step up.
“I can’t pin-point anything at this point. We got to win six out of seven to qualify from here. We need to be in that mindset to take every match as a virtual semi-final from here and there’s no room for complacency. Need guys stepping up their game at the right time. Hopefully, they understand that moving forward,” he concluded.
Also, Read: IPL 2018: Match 29, RCB vs KKR – Kolkata Knight Riders Players Ratings