Not very often an individual is seen gutted while holding the Orange Cap on one hand. It was one such night for the 29-year-old Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli. Wearing the bright red and the sparkling gold, Kohli fired through all cylinders.
But just like those action movies, the man fought it all alone from one end.
While chasing another 200 plus score, the RCB batters faltered halfway stage. With 19 being the second best contribution, one can easily say it was fitting to see Mumbai win.
Match Report: IPL 2018: Mumbai Indians Open Their Account With a Resounding Victory over RCB
Rohit sizzles with 94 while Kohli’s 92 goes in vain:
The captains from both the camps called the shot. Rohit Sharma, leading the Mumbai Indians, scored a gutsy 92 off 62 balls. He came in to bat with his side two down on the board, while the run’s column sporting a blank look.
Rohit knew it was his game from there on. Having faced defeats in their last three encounters, the men in blue refused to give up. Well, in front of a passionate set of spectators, the hosts delivered a punch.
A solid 65 from Windies export Evin Lewis and few crucial partnerships in the middle got the hosts to 213 for six in 20 overs. And from there on, it was Mumbai’s game.
Kohli decided to open the innings, after all, there is a school of thought that says ‘your best batsman should face the maximum deliveries’.
The skipper did face the maximum deliveries and remained unbeaten to see his side losing by a margin that is sure to hurt their net run-rate.
Credit to Mumbai who bowled well: Virat Kohli
“I don’t really want to wear this right now. We just threw it away, and need to reflect on our dismissals.’ said Kohli, who is the current highest run-getter this season with 201 runs. He had his pads on and an expression on his face which you don’t often see when he leads his country,” Kohli said.
“One or two good partnerships would’ve done it for us, but credit to Mumbai who bowled really well. Mumbai played well, we didn’t get any chances, and when you have your back against the wall – like they did – they could play fearlessly. We tried our hardest but couldn’t get the breakthroughs.” he added.
Also read: IPL 2018: Sportzwiki’s Man of The Match: Krunal Pandya
