“Kohli has found his tempo, now he must convert it into a truck” - Ajay Jadeja on RCB star batter's return to runs in IPL 2022
Former Indian batter Ajay Jadeja wants Virat Kohli to build on the half-century he scored against the Gujarat Titans (GT) in Royal Challengers Bangalore's (RCB) previous IPL 2022 match. Stating that the RCB star has found his 'tempo' (rhythm), he urged the 33-year-old to convert the same into a 'truck' (big scores).
The former Bangalore captain registered his first fifty of IPL 2022 in the previous match against Gujarat. He scored 58 off 53 balls before being bowled by Mohammed Shami. RCB went on to lose the contest by six wickets.
Bangalore will take on a rejuvenated Chennai Super Kings (CSK) side on Wednesday (4 May) at the Maharashtra Cricket Association (MCA) Stadium in Pune. Previewing the match on Cricbuzz, Jadeja admitted that Kohli’s return to form spells good news for RCB. He, however, added:
“Kohli has found his tempo, now he must convert it into a truck. Earlier, he was not able to do that as well (score runs), so it’s a definite improvement. I don’t see any such issues with the bat for Bangalore. If they have a good day with the bat, RCB have Faf du Plessis, Glenn Maxwell, Virat and even Rajat Patidar.”
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Taking guard for Match Day. 😎👊🏻
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There were mixed reactions to Kohli’s fifty on social media. While some were happy to see him back among the runs, others felt his slow innings hurt the team’s progress. While the star batter ended his innings at a strike rate of 109.43, Rajat Patidar’s 52 came at a strike rate of 162.50.
“Want Virat Kohli to play a bit more aggressively” - Pragyan Ojha
Captain Faf, Mike Hesson and Josh Hazlewood give us some insights into the team’s preparations and priorities heading into the big game against CSK, on @kreditbee presents Game Day.
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Sharing his views on Kohli’s return among the runs, former Indian left-arm spinner Pragyan Ojha opined that the 33-year-old will have to lift his strike rate if he is playing 50 balls or more. He said:
“Want Virat Kohli to play a bit more aggressively. He found some form in the last game. But had he played 50 balls at his peak, he would have been on 80-90. If that happens, people will stop discussing about changes to be made to the team. Their combination is good. No particular changes that I can see for now.”
The former RCB captain and Patidar added 99 for the second wicket against GT. However, Bangalore could only end up posting 170 for six, a total Gujarat chased down without much trouble.
Also Read: "When three big names are not performing, the team will be on the backfoot" - Imran Tahir analyzes RCB's batting woes in IPL 2022