Virat Kohli was impressive at the start of his innings for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) against the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) but one commentator and former New Zealand cricketer Simon Doull was not too pleased with the way the former RCB skipper brought up his second 50 of the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season.
Kohli remained unbeaten on 42 runs off 25 balls after the end of the powerplay. But then, he took 10 balls to get to his half-century, something that left the commentator unimpressed.
Doull said that batters should not play for 'personal milestones. "Virat Kohli took 10 balls to reach from 42 to 50. There is absolutely no room for personal milestones in this game anymore," Doull said during the commentary on Star Sports.
His criticism was in stark similarity to his words for Pakistan skipper Babar Azam during the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2023. Doull accused Babar of stat-padding during his
Kohli went on to score 61 runs off 44 balls with four fours and as many sixes before Amit Mishra get him dismissed. The batter tried to go for a pull shot but shot the ball straight to Marcus Stoinis.
Last month, Doull also lashed out at Babar Azam during the Pakistan Super League (PSL) 2023. Babar scored a hundred against the Quetta Gladiators while captaining Peshawar Zalmi.
“The last little while, that [hitting singles] is all that has been happening rather than looking for boundaries still, when you’ve got so much firepower to come,” he said. “Hundreds are great, stats are brilliant, but it still must be team first.”
As far as Kohli is concerned, the 34-year-old has been in stupendous form for the Challengers. In the very first game, he scored an unbeaten 82 and helped RCB beat the Mumbai Indians (MI) by eight wickets.
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