IPL 2021: ‘Our execution under pressure was spot on’ – Virat Kohli ‘proud’ of his side’s performance in yet another nail bitter
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Virat Kohli
It was yet another nail biting low scoring affair at the Chepauk as Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) sealed their second win of the season. Sunrisers Hyderabad fell six runs short chasing a modest target of 150 as they conceded their second defeat of IPL 2021. While Glenn Maxwell starred for RCB with the bat, it was young all-rounder Shahbaz Ahmed who starred with the ball picking up three wickets.
RCB skipper Virat Kohli was all praises for his bowling line up. Kohli feels that it were ‘the extra bowling options’ which made the difference in the chase. The Delhi batsman adds that his batting kept on getting tougher as the match went on and the bowlers were spot on with the execution.
“Not as exhausted as I am proud (of the team). It was a top game for us, the wicket is going to get challenging, we saw that yesterday. You are never really out of the game in these conditions. We have more bowling options and those extra bowling options made those impact performances in the middle overs.”
“I told the guys don’t think that we struggled to get to 149. If it was tough for us, it will be tough for them as well. Chasing under pressure and you lose wickets, the game can swing anywhere. The wicket was never a belter and our execution under pressure was spot on. It kept getting tougher and tougher with the old ball.” Kohli said in the post-match presentation.
“I think Glenn Maxwell’s innings was the difference for us,” Virat Kohli
Since finding a new home in RCB, Glenn Maxwell has been in great touch. In his second game for the franchise, Maxwell struck a fifty, his first in the league since 2016. Kohli hailed his innings as crucial for the side. The skipper is delighted by the way Harshal Patel has rose to become RCB’s go to man at death, something they had lacked for seasons.
While RCB have won both their encounters so far, they have been very close contested and Kohli is not impressed with it. He asserts that they will be taking one game at a time and will be looking to execute their plans.
“I tried to build the momentum with few boundaries in the powerplay. I think Maxi’s innings was the difference for us. To be very honest, we are not over excited with wins this season.“
“We have clarity of plans. We traded Harshal from Delhi, gave him a specific role and he’s doing an outstanding job for us. We are taking one game at a time, we are enjoying playing with each other. Need to be professional and do the job on the field,” Kohli adds.
David Warner’s half-century went in vain as Shahbaz’s second over changed the course of the game. The left-arm spinner scalped three crucial wickets in the over to seriously dent SRH’s hope of acing the ace. The Sunrisers’ deep batting lineup failed to get going on the tricky Chepauk pitch as RCB orchestrated a perfect comeback.
Also Read: IPL 2021: Rohit Sharma wears “Plastic Free Ocean” shoes in his second tournament outing against KKR
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Anshuman Mahapatra
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