IPL 2020: 'Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers are not delivering to the standards they have set for themselves' - Aakash Chopra on RCB's loss to SRH
Former Indian opener Aakash Chopra has opined that Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers will have to come good as a pair for the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) to go the distance in IPL 2020.
He made this observation while reviewing the Virat Kohli-led side's defeat against the Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in a video shared on his YouTube channel.
Aakash Chopra started by pointing out that RCB got off to a sedate start in yesterday's match, but added that Devdutt Padikkal and Joshua Philippe cannot be blamed as the conditions weren't in their favor.
"RCB got off to a slow start on a slow pitch. To be honest, I can talk about Devdutt Padikkal but he played well in the last match and Joshua Philippe, who did not bat that badly, he is one of the highest run-scorers."
The renowned commentator observed that the outcome of the match was always dependent on how Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers fared. He highlighted that the dynamic duo have not delivered to the lofty standards they have set for themselves in the last few crucial matches for RCB.
"This game was all about Kohli and AB in my opinion. The RCB batting is not working. Kohli and AB are going to pay a huge price for their own success because they have set the yardstick very high and the two of them are not delivering to the standards they have set for themselves towards the business end of the tournament."
The former KKR player cited the example of RCB's match against CSK, where Kohli and De Villiers could not provide the finishing touches to their innings. Chopra stated that a similar issue happened in this encounter as well.
"Whether it was the Chennai match where they were set and expected to take RCB to around 160 but were stopped at 140-145. Here also it was expected that the two of them will take them ahead together, but the team is not able to go ahead."
Aakash Chopra on RCB's reliance on Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers
Aakash Chopra observed that talented players like Devdutt Padikkal, Joshua Philippe and Gurkeerat Mann are just the supporting cast in the RCB lineup. He claimed that the protagonists in Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers are required to deliver the goods for the team to do well.
"So if RCB keep losing matches continuously and if these two players don't score runs regularly, Padikkal, Joshua Philippe, Gurkeerat are all support cast. The DNA of this team is all about Kohli and AB de Villiers scoring runs and they are not doing that."
Aakash Chopra signed off by stating that RCB will have to pull up their socks in their next match against the Delhi Capitals, as a below-par score like the one they posted against the Sunrisers Hyderabad will not suffice.
"In the last match, they have a chance of defeating Delhi and qualifying in the top two but the winning signs are not being seen currently because batting first they scored just 120 runs in 120 balls, which is not going to be enough."
Monday's encounter between the Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Delhi Capitals will almost be a must-win match for both the teams. While the winner of the encounter will sail through to the first qualifier, the loser will have to hope for other results to go their way to qualify for the IPL 2020 playoffs.