Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) started on a positive note and attacking instinct in the innings batting first in Eliminator, scoring 49 runs in the first five overs against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2021 Eliminator but it all fizzled out soon.
Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli was once again found losing his momentum after being set and giving his team a fiery start. As questions remain over the manner in which Virat Kohli loses the pace with which he scores, Gautam Gambhir has slammed the manner in which the Royal Challengers Bangalore captain got out.
Royal Challengers Bangalore Skipper Virat Kohli Had To Bat Till The 16th Over- Gautam Gambhir
Sunil Narine’s mystery bowling derailed RCB’s innings, with the veteran spinner picking 4 scalps including dismissing the likes of Virat Kohli, KS Bharat, Glenn Maxwell, and AB de Villiers in the middle overs. While there’s no denying that Sunil Narine bowled exceptionally well against Bengaluru, Gautam Gambhir was specifically sceptical over the shot Virat Kohli played that got him out.
“Just poor batting. Poor shot selection as well… Someone who was in should have batted till the 16th over. It started with Virat that he got out at the wrong time playing a shocking shot. And then Glenn Maxwell again, when two balls were left in Sunil Narine’s spell, why would you play that shot? He could have targeted Shivam Mavi,” Gambhir said.
“They should have looked to get 150-155… You need to have a better game plan on who do you want to target and when and what is the situation as well. Virat had to bat till the 16th over and had he got that 60-70, the have could have reached that total.”
During the eliminator on Monday, Sunil Narine gave glimpses of his ‘old mystery’ with the ball and then topped it up with three monster sixes while batting, as KKR’s four-wicket victory dashed Virat Kohli’s dream of winning an IPL trophy while leading Royal Challengers Bangalore.
KKR struck in the 10th over as Sunil Narine picked a wicket in his first over, dismissing KS Bharat. Then, Sunil Narine landed two massive blows in his next two overs. First, he disturbed the timber to get Virat Kohli out for 39 and then bamboozled AB de Villiers to pick his third wicket, pushing RCB on the backfoot. Sunil Narine continued to make merry, and KKR dominated the proceedings as Glenn Maxwell was dismissed in the 17th over.
Sanjay Manjrekar: Virat Kohli Kept Taking The Single And Left KS Bharat To Increase The Run Rate
Sanjay Manjrekar, another former cricketer turned commentator joining Gautam Gambhir in the conversation, agreed with the former India opener felt that skipper Virat Kohli should’ve taken the onus on himself to drive the run-rate but instead, he left it to youngster KS Bharat who struggled to cope with the pressure.
“The only point I want to make here is that… there was that partnership where we could see Bharat was struggling today. It wasn’t his day… but Virat was happy to still give him the single. You know, he was batting at 30 so I think he could have taken the onus on himself being the senior player and more qualified to handle quality spin but he kept taking the single and leaving on Bharat to expedite the run rate. And it was on the cards, I could see that wicket falling because young Bharat was feeling the pressure of getting that run rate up,” opined Manjrekar.
Sunil Narine didn’t just bamboozle RCB with his mystery bowling, picking up four crucial wickets, but also mesmerized fans with his explosive batting while promoted up the order. With the bat, the Windies all-rounder scored 26 runs from just 15 balls to take the game away from RCB’s hands. As things stand, Virat Kohli ends his career as the captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore without a single IPL title to his name. Virat Kohli top-scored for RCB with 39 runs off 33 balls.
Kolkata Knight Riders 139 for 6 (Gill 29, Narine 26, Iyer 26, Chahal 2-16, Harshal 2-19, Siraj 2-19) beat Royal Challengers Bangalore 138 for 7 (Kohli 39, Narine 4-21, Ferguson 2-30) by four wickets