Virat Kohli hits 5th Indian Premier League hundred
Bangalore won it in the end by 10 runs but the game was not over till the 4th ball of the final over when Russell missed one finally and that ensured that the score cannot be chased down. Rana and Russell had almost got their team over the line with 76 runs needed in the last 4 overs but Moeen Ali kept his calm and defended the 23 runs which were in the bag in the final over.
Chasing a target of 214, Kolkata did not get off to the best of starts and lost Lynn cheaply. Narine played his shots while he was out there in the middle but he too departed along with Gill inside the Powerplay. Robin Uthappa and Nitish Rana then joined hands but even as the latter kept the scoreboard ticking, Uthappa struggled and eventually fell for a very slow innings of 9 off 20 balls. In walked Russell and the game turned on its head. The ropes were being cleared at will and once again it looked like Virat Kohli’s men would mess up a defense but somehow in the end, they held their nerve and the target was too much for the hosts to achieve
Coming to the bowling, it was a decent show from the Bangalore men till the partnership between Rana and Russell. Stoinis especially bowled a terrific first three balls in the 19th over which put a huge load of pressure on the batsmen. Thus, in the end the blitzkrieg from Russell was not enough.
IPL 2019 Virat Kohli 58 ball 100 runs Highlights RCB VS KKR
A brilliant hundred from Virat Kohli and a smashing 66 from Ali and a cameo from Stoinis meant that Bangalore got a total which would be really difficult to chase even on this ground where it has become really hard to defend. Thus, the visitors also got their second win of the season.
Man of the Match and Bangalore skipper, Virat Kohli says that it felt good after winning the game here in Kolkata. Laughs while saying it feels good to not give an interview right after the match as the losing skipper. He credits the way Stoinis bowled the 19th over and feels the 3 dot balls the Aussie bowled in that over were very crucial. Virat admits at one time that they were looking for 170 and never felt they could get close to 200 while batting but says that the way Moeen batted and Stoinis playing a cameo took them to the total.
States that Moen communicated to him and told him that he was going after it and that changed the game completely. Mentions that being a senior player, he wanted to play deep as AB de Villiers was not there but once again showers praise on Moeen for taking the pressure off him. Reckons that death overs are always crucial in places like Eden Gardens where the outfield is very quick especially with the way Russell is hitting the ball this season. He signs off by saying that it was always going to be very crucial how they bowl in the end but getting wickets at the start was also important as it sets the way they want to play the game.
Bangalore were off to a slow start, playing and missing quite a few deliveries at the beginning. Parthiv Patel departed early and was replaced by Akshdeep Nath who could not do much either. Then came Moeen Ali and suddenly, Kohli who was at the other end all along and not looking so fluent, started middling things. Moeen Ali went crazy as he put the ball over the fence at will and was especially stern towards Kuldeep, who went for 59 in his four overs including 27 in one. Such was the dominance of Ali that he went past Kohli and when he was dismissed for 66, the Bangalore skipper was well behind.
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The architect of this innings was mainly Virat Kohli, who reached 3 figures but was ably supported by Moeen Ali, Marcus Stoinis.After the dismissal of Moeen though, Kohli took charge and found the boundaries. Stoinis who came in next played a quick cameo too and ensured that Bangalore got to a massive total. Virat ended up with exactly 100 and was dismissed on the last ball of the innings.
Bangalore have managed to hold on to a win by the skin of their teeth and have gone to 4 points but remain last on the table. Kolkata, on the other hand, have lost 4 on the bounce. They will look to come hard the next game which they play on Sunday
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