RCB skipper Virat Kohli rues dismal show which led to his teams exit after loss to SRH
RCB skipper Virat Kohli after being dismissed for six against SRH at Abu Dhabi on Friday. PIC/IPL; BCCI
A bit of nerves, some hesitation and almost every good stroke going straight to the fielder—Royal Challengers Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli listed multiple reasons for a "strange phase" in the IPL for his side which ended with a loss in the Eliminator. RCB lost by six wickets to a resolute Sunrisers Hyderabad after posting a modest 132 on the board despite a batting-heavy line-up on Friday.
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"Maybe a bit of nerves, maybe a bit of hesitation, we need to be more expressive with the bat. We didn't put enough pressure on their bowlers. We didn't have any phases in the game where we got away from the opposition," Kohli rued. Kohli admitted that it has been "a strange kind of phase in the last four-five games" of the league stage. His side got through to the play-offs despite losing four matches on the trot.
"In the last two-three games we have hit it straight to the fielders, lot of good shots going to the fielders," he said. On Friday, Kane Williamson struck a half century to ruin RCB's chances after he was dropped by Devdutt Padikkal at the boundary in a difficult attempt when SRH needed 28 from 2.4 overs. "It is a game of margins and if Kane [Williamson] was taken there then it is a different ball game," Kohli said at the post-match presentation.
"If you talk about the first innings I don't think we had enough runs on the board. We made one helluva game in the second half, the positions we got ourselves into in the second half," he added. Talking about the positives from the tournament, he said, "Couple of people have stood up, Padikkal is one of them. He has played with a lot of class and efficiency for the team. Very happy for him.
"[Mohammed] Siraj has had a good comeback. Yuzi [Chahal] has been solid as ever, AB [de Villiers] has been solid as ever. The others contributed but just not enough." Kohli said not having home and away matches has made this IPL one of the most competitive ever. "That also tells you the strength of the teams in the IPL, no team is run away favourites as such and every team has strong players. One of the other reasons is playing in only three venues and there's no home and away advantage.
"Similar conditions for everyone and that's the reason this has been one of the competitive IPL this year," he said.
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