Extending his dismal form in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL), Royal Challengers Bangalore's (RCB) star batter Virat Kohli registered his third golden duck of the season in a match against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Sunday (May 8).
Kohli yet again disappointed his fans who were hoping to see their star in his elements but the former India skipper's saga of lean patch continued. Meanwhile Bollywood actor Ranveer Singh, who is a big fan of Kohli, expressed his surprise and said he thought that the 33-year-old would play a big knock on Sunday.
In the very first ball of the RCB's innings, opener Kohli was out for a golden duck as he was bowled by Jagadeesha Suchith. This was his sixth golden duck overall in his IPL career so far.
"It is quite disappointing to see Virat getting out on a first-ball duck. However, it doesn't affect his stature," Ranveer said.
"He was and will always be a great cricketer. I want him to come out of this bad phase soon because I want to see him do well for Team India in the T20 World Cup," the actor added.
"Virat is one of the best batsmen in the world. It was his third golden duck in TATA IPL 2022, which is completely unexpected. I thought Virat would play a big knock today," he said.
"He is definitely going through a bad phase but I want this player to be fully recharged before the T20 World Cup so that he regains his prime form for the big tournament," Ranveer said.
However, spinner Wanindu Hasaranga picked up a five-wicket haul after skipper Faf du Plessis' impactful half-century as RCB recorded a 67-run victory over SRH to boost their play-off hopes in the IPL 2022.
Opting to bat on a slow surface, du Plessis led from the front with a 50-ball 73 not out, while Dinesh Karthik (eight-ball 30 not out) provided the late flourish as RCB overcame an anxious start to post 192/3.
In response, Sunrisers Hyderabad were skittled out for 125 to crash to their fourth loss on the trot as Hasaranga stymied their chase with figures of 4-1-18-5.
