Batting stalwart Virat Kohli has been with the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) since the very beginning of the IPL in 2008. Over the years, he has seen everything with the team, including tough seasons at the bottom of the table, near misses as runners-up, and finally lifting the trophy after featuring in the tournament for 18 seasons.
This season is special for RCB as they are playing as defending champions for the first time. Naturally, expectations are high for them to win back-to-back titles. They started their campaign with a strong win over Sunrisers Hyderabad in a high-scoring match, lost to Rajasthan Royals, and then bounced back again.
On Wednesday night, RCB picked up their fourth win of the season, which took them to the top of the IPL 2026 points table. They chased down a target of 147 comfortably in just 15.1 overs, winning the match by five wickets.
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Even though the chase looked easy, there was a small concern. From a solid position of 66/1, RCB suddenly slipped to 122/5, losing four wickets in a short span. It was something Kohli spoke about later in the dressing room.
Kohli's message to RCB teammates
Kohli, who scored 49 runs off 34 balls, said he would have liked the team to finish the game in a more comfortable way.
“From a personal perspective and also from a batting group perspective, I think I would have liked to see us finish with two or three down. I don’t like seeing collapses, but bloody well done," Kohli said in a video shared by RCB.
He also appreciated Romario Shepherd for his quick unbeaten 14 off eight balls, which helped finish the game.
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“Good to see Sheppy (Romario Shepherd) finally get some time at the back and finish the game off. KP (Krunal Pandya) is the only one left now, so everyone gets some game time and then we’ll probably see a celebration next time. Well done, very professional, we’ll keep moving ahead," he added.
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) will now face Delhi Capitals (DC) on April 18 at M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru.