Virat Kohli switched his beast mode on as he hammered the Punjab Kings bowlers in the do-or-die match in Tata IPL 2024 on Thursday. Smashing 92 off 47 balls, Kohli’s stellar knock at Dharamshala featured six maximums and seven boundaries. His knock along with a quickfire 23-ball 55 by Rajat Patidar propelled RCB to a commanding total of 241/7. In response, Punjab Kings crumbled 181 all out in the 17th over and crashed out of Tata IPL 2024. This is their 10th consecutive occasion of failing to qualify for playoffs. On the other hand, RCB have pocketed 2 additional points. They are now number 7 in the IPL Point Table rankings with 10 points and a decent NRR of +0.217.
In every critical match, Kohli has been consistent with the bat. In match against SRH in 2023, he scored a century off 63. In game against GT, he smashed another ton in 61 deliveries. And in Thursday’s encounter, Kohli slammed 92 off 47. This was the first knockout match of the tournament. Stakes were high a Kohli delivered.
Swapnil Singh (2/28), Karn Sharma (2/36), and Lockie Ferguson (2/29) each took two wickets, while Mohammed Siraj (3/43) claimed three for RCB.In the chase, PBKS lost Prabhsimran Singh (6) early, but Rossouw attacked aggressively, hitting Swapnil Singh for two fours and Siraj for three fours and a six.
Jonny Bairstow (27) and Rossouw added 75 runs in six overs, with Yash Dayal and Ferguson conceding 16 and 14 runs respectively. After Bairstow’s dismissal by Ferguson, Rossouw accelerated, reaching his fifty off 21 balls. Jitesh Sharma was bowled by Karn, and Swapnil dismissed Liam Livingstone (0), leaving Punjab at 126/5 in the 12th over.