Virat Kohli’s victory celebration after Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) 7-wicket win over Punjab Kings (PBKS) on Sunday, April 20, raised eyebrows, especially his animated reaction towards PBKS captain Shreyas Iyer. The match took place at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, Chandigarh.
After being asked to bat first, PBKS posted a modest total of 158, with their batting unit underperforming. RCB's chase was anchored by Kohli, who played a brilliant 73* off 54 balls. He was well-supported by Devdutt Padikkal, who scored 61 runs. RCB completed the chase in 18.5 overs, with Jitesh Sharma finishing the game in style by hitting a six off part-timer Nehal Wadhera in the penultimate over.
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Kohli, who was at the non-striker's end, celebrated animatedly in front of Iyer after the match-winning moment. The exchange between the two captains added drama to the occasion.
Following his Player of the Match performance, Kohli expressed the importance of the victory. "Very important win for us! Two points can make a big difference at this stage of the tournament," he said. "I wanted to accelerate, but as Salty (Phil Salt) did not get going today, I tried to stay in there for as long as possible to let the others know that they can go for their shots. There is always a temptation to keep going for it, but you also need to assess the conditions. So, I tried to use my experience and keep it going."
Kohli also praised RCB's auction strategy and their squad composition. "It is also key to understand the strengths of the others around. We had a really good auction this time. We have Romario Shepherd and Tim David who can hit lots of sixes in no time. That is something we missed previously. Also, the overall composition is really good."
Kohli is currently third on the Orange Cap list with 322 runs from eight games at an average of 64.40, including four half-centuries.
