[Watch] Virat Kohli hugs Gautam Gambhir cordially during strategic timeout in RCB vs KKR IPL 2024 clash
Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) stalwart Virat Kohli hugged Gautam Gambhir during the strategic timeout in the first innings of the IPL 2024 match against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Friday. Gambhir was with KKR support staff at the venue as he is their mentor for this season.
The special moment transpired at the end of 16 overs when the umpires called for the second strategic break. Gambhir walked into the playing area to discuss strategies with his KKR players, while Kohli was unbeaten at the crease for RCB.
After both noticed each other on the field, they went on to shake hands cordially, followed by a smiling side hug. The duo also exchanged a few pleasant words before returning to their business. The incident caught the attention of the fans as Gambhir and Kohli have a history of on-field heated exchanges in IPL over the years.
You can watch the moment in the posts below:
Virat Kohli's 83* helps RCB reach 182/6 in the first innings of IPL 2024 clash vs KKR
RCB batted first in the contest after losing the toss. Captain Faf du Plessis (8) perished cheaply in the second over as Harshit Rana gave KKR an early breakthrough. Virat Kohli then held the innings together with an anchoring knock of 83* (59), allowing other batters around him to chip in with impactful knocks.
Cameron Green (33), Glenn Maxwell (28), and Dinesh Karthik (20) supported Kohli in the batting department. During his 83-run knock, Virat Kohli smashed 4 sixes and as many fours and remained unbeaten in the end, taking RCB to a decent total of 182/6 on a tricky surface.
Speaking at the mid-innings break, RCB all-rounder Cameron Green said:
"We're pretty happy with the total. We saw how the pitch is playing, so hopefully it stays the same in the second innings. (Batting at no.3) I love playing there, getting a lot of freedom. It's always fun to bat with Virat. Good fun again today. There are certain bowlers in those teams I've never played before and he's played them 15 times.
"So there was plenty to pick up. (Surface) They had a pretty good blueprint with the way they wanted to bowl. There seems to be a bit of bounce. Hopefully, the dew won't come into play."
Do you think RCB can defend this target? Let us know in the comments section below.