"Virat Kohli cannot do everything alone" - Harbhajan Singh on RCB's 21-run loss to KKR in IPL 2023
Former Indian spinner Harbhajan Singh believes that Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) cannot rely solely on Virat Kohli to fire with the bat in the ongoing IPL 2023.
He emphasized that while Kohli has been in fantastic form and will continue to score big runs for his team, the other batters must also step up and give him enough support.
Harbhajan made these remarks after Bangalore suffered a 21-run loss to Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at the M.Chinnaswamy Stadium on Wednesday, April 26. Speaking on his YouTube channel, he said:
"Virat Kohli cannot do everything alone. Yes, he will score runs for you all the time and is a fantastic player. However, he needs support from other players, which was missing. Everyone got out one by one, and they eventually lost the game."
Notably, Kohli has shown tremendous consistency this time around. He has hit five half-centuries in this year's cash-rich league and has 333 runs to his name from eight outings. He slammed an impressive fifty against Kolkata, contributing 54 runs from 37 balls.
Virat Kohli couldn’t win it for RCB 👀
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Harbhajan also highlighted that Dinesh Karthik's batting form has been a big concern for the Bangalore-based side. He noted that the keeper-batter has failed to make the kind of impact that he was able to make in the previous edition.
The cricketer-turned-commentator added:
"Dinesh Karthik has disappointed RCB this time. He hasn't been in the kind of form that he was in last year. He is one such player who can change the course of the match. He just doesn't seem to be in that kind of a rhythm."
Karthik scored 22 runs off 18 balls against Kolkata. He failed to finish the game for his team as Bangalore couldn't chase down the 201-run total. The seasoned campaigner has mustered just 82 runs from eight matches at a dismal average of 11.86.
"If two out of them are back early, it becomes very difficult to chase" - Harbhajan Singh on RCB's top order big guns
Harbhajan Singh lauded KKR captain Nitish Rana for rotating his spinners well during the contest against RCB. He mentioned that Bangalore were in deep trouble once Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell departed early.
The 42-year-old suggested that Bangalore will struggle while chasing big totals if two of their star batters are dismissed cheaply. He added:
"KKR did a fantastic job with the ball. Nitish Rana was spot-on with his captaincy. He brought in the leg spinner early, who dismissed Faf du Plessis early. Then Varun Chakravarthy got Glenn Maxwell out. RCB have just three players. So if two out of them are back early, it becomes very difficult to chase down such a total."
Updated points table after Match No.36 of IPL 2023 🏏
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The ongoing campaign has been a mixed bag for RCB so far. They have four wins and as many losses to their name and are placed fifth in the points table.