"He could go well past his IPL 2016 performance" - Matthew Hayden makes massive claim on Virat Kohli's form ahead of IPL 2024 playoffs

Former Australian opener Matthew Hayden has made a stunning claim about Virat Kohli's batting going into the IPL 2024 playoffs. He reckons the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) star can have an even better season than what he had in 2016 when he had won the Orange Cap.

Kohli had scored a mind-boggling 973 runs in 16 games with as many as four hundreds and had taken RCB to the final. However, Hayden believes the hunger that the veteran opener has shown this season could help him go past his tally from eight years ago.

Here's what Matthew Hayden told Star Sports about Virat Kohli:

"He could go well past his IPL 2016 performance in the kind of form that he's in. So more than anything, I just think it's the energy and the love of the game, the passion, the commitment for it all—all of those describing words that you can glorify this great man with, whether it be on the field or with bat in hand. He just loves it; it's crazy."

Kohli has amassed 708 runs this season in 14 games and could potentially have three more innings if RCB go all the way to the final. His cameo of 47 played a major role in Bengaluru beating Chennai Super Kings by 27 runs to seal the playoff spot.

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Matthew Hayden on Virat Kohli's body language

Matthew Hayden also opened up on how fired up Virat Kohli was in the field during RCB's game against CSK. His ability to get the home crowd behind their team and also have the wit to silence the CSK supporters was something Hayden was highly impressed with.

On this, the Australian stated:

"The thing is, he's (Kohli) so committed. And he gives it to the crowd as well. There were a couple of moments where he was telling CSK fans to be quiet."

RCB will now take on the Rajasthan Royals in the IPL 2024 Eliminator in Ahmedabad on Wednesday, May 22.

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