The extraordinary day for Virat Kohli was Sunday, as he scored his sixth IPL 2025 half-century, leading Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a good six-wicket win over Delhi Capitals. He scored 51 runs in 47 balls with the help of four boundaries. The innings became important when RCB was down at 26 for 3 in pursuit of 163 runs at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. His partnership with Krunal Pandya proved to be significant as the duo added a century partnership to put the team back on track.
With this latest half-century, Kohli moved to the forefront of the Orange Cap tally this season with 443 runs in 10 matches. He now stands 16 runs ahead of second-placed Suryakumar Yadav while Sai Sudharsan trails in third with 417 runs. Kohli deliberated on a few aspects of his game post facto, chiefly how it correlated with the pitch in a different character than what was expected in the previous games.
“It is one of those great wins for us considering the pitch conditions. We have seen quite a few matches being played here and this wicket behaved differently. During a chase, I nearly always look into the dugout on whether we are on track, what my role is, and the kind of innings I need to play. It was a good win because we were under pressure, and that partnership with Krunal really helped.”
When asked how he approaches a run-chase, Kohli said that just as one looks at the scoreboard and the pitch conditions, one should also be aware of the factors concerning the bowlers. What is vital is to keep the run flow, not to let the game stagnate, as this can be achieved through quick singles and doubles.
“I look at the score, I look at the conditions, and I look at the bowlers on the field. I try to keep loading singles and doubles because that opens up opportunities for odd boundaries here and there. The flow of the game is truly key; that has always been my target,” he said. “Chalk and cheese people forget about partnerships and long T20 innings.
Kohli noted that the 2025 IPL season is epitomizing the importance of partnerships. One cannot just walk in and smack from ball one and get away with it. “What you’re seeing this year is that players can’t just flail at everything right from the start. There needs to be a professional approach to read the situation. You have to get in a spot where you can start taking control over the bowlers, and that requires forming partnerships, especially on a slower pitch where striking doesn’t come easy,” he said.
“This is basically how I build my innings. I try to look at the conditions, to look at the score on the board, and see what the situation is requiring of me. Being able to keep rotating the strike is a skill set you have to possess to be successful,” he said, laying down the thought process that goes into his batting. It is clear that Kohli is not just playing the game but is also strategizing every move.
