Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) are on a roll and continue their winning momentum in the ongoing 17th season of the IPL (Indian Premier League), with their fourth win to remain in the hunt for the playoffs.
On Thursday (May 9), RCB and Punjab Kings (PBKS) faced each other in the 58th match of IPL 2024 which was held at the Himachal Pradesh Cricket Association (HPCA) Stadium in Dharamsala. RCB won the match by 60 runs as Virat Kohli dazzled with the willow in hand once again.
Virat Kohli was adjudged the Player of the Match (POTM) as he racked up 92 runs off 47 balls, hitting seven fours and six sixes at an impressive strike rate of 195.74. Virat’s strike rate has been under the scanner in the ongoing season of the lucrative tournament and his power-packed knock has helped him silence a few of his critics.
While Virat Kohli put on an exhibition of strokes at the HPCA on Thursday, his go-to shot against the Punjab Kings spinners turned out to be the slog sweep. He showed plenty of intent during the middle overs and went after leg-spinner Rahul Chahar and Liam Livingstone to stamp his authority on the game.
He utilised the slog sweep to unsettle the line and length of the PBKS spinners and kept RCB’s run rate flying high despite several tactical changes in the field made by the PBKS captain Sam Curran.
In a chat with the broadcasters, during the post-match presentation, Virat Kohli said that he brought the slog-sweep out as soon as the spinners came into the attack and it paid dividends, just like it has previously in the season.
“I just felt like I needed to take a bit more risk and for me that shot (slog sweep) was something that I used to hit regularly back in the day. And that's allowing me to hit off the back foot as well because I'm always looking to expose that side of the field against the spin,” said Kohli.
Kohli emphasised that he has a lot of faith in the shot, it’s a part of his muscle memory and that he is not afraid to execute it when the time and the stage feels right.
"I've brought out the slog-sweep to the spinners (laughs). I just mentally put myself in that situation and I didn't practice it at all.
"I know I can hit it because I've hit it a lot in the past. So, I just felt like I need to take a bit more risk and for me that shot was something that I used to hit regularly back in the day. And that's allowing me to hit off the back foot as well because I'm always looking to expose that side of the field against the spin.
"For me that has been a massive factor in this IPL. So, I think it just takes a bit more conviction and take out that thought that props up: 'what if you get out'. I've been managing to stay ahead of that thought in this IPL and that's really helped me in the middle overs in this IPL, keeping my strike rate up and keeping the scoring rate going for the team as well," he added.
Virat stitched a 76-run stand alongside Rajat Patidar (55 off 23 balls) off only 32 balls for the third wicket. The partnership deflated the spirits of Punjab players and provided the impetus RCB needed to get to a big score.
