All posts tagged: Virat Kohli IPL 2025

‘Virat’s business as usual’: Mo Bobat says Kohli focussed on what he can achieve with RCB in IPL | Ipl News

‘Virat’s business as usual’: Mo Bobat says Kohli focussed on what he can achieve with RCB in IPL | Ipl News

With Virat Kohli set to play his first competitive match on Saturday after announcing his Test retirement, Royal Challengers Bengaluru team director Mo Bobat said that the star batter still retains the competitive edge and is looking forward to what he can achieve with RCB in the IPL. Kohli’s Bengaluru will host defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders at the Chinnaswamy with RCB needing a win to qualify for the play-offs. “The first thing to say is Virat’s business as usual, as he always is. There’s enough of the public and the nation’s attention on him, and he doesn’t want any more of that. He’s ambitious about what we can achieve this year with RCB and that’s what he does,” said Bobat during a pre-match press conference. “He should be incredibly proud of what he’s done as a Test player for India. RCB as a franchise, we are all incredibly proud of what every one of our players does for India, but in particular him. To play 120 plus Test matches and to score nearly 10,000 …

Virat Kohli’s loneliness: How stardom extracted a heavy price of friendships from him | Cricket News

Virat Kohli’s loneliness: How stardom extracted a heavy price of friendships from him | Cricket News

During this IPL season, Virat Kohli caught up with some old friends from his under-19 days. He had a reunion with UP opener Tanmay Srivastava and Baroda pacer Ajitesh Argal. Both are IPL match officials now but when in teens they all were in the same victory frame as their skipper Kohli when India won the under-19 World Cup in Malaysia. They spoke warmly, shared a meal, relived the old times but there was something missing. It wasn’t really like old times. Kohli would recall meeting his pals in a recent RCB podcast – Mindset of a Champion – with seasoned cricket host Mayanti Langer. The riveting conversation centres around the aspects of Kohli’s life that have stayed hidden despite the 24×7 media scrutiny on him. In the close-to-an-hour long interaction, Kohli takes one up those lofty stairs of the ivory towers where the superstars reside. Spoiler alert this is not a ‘good home’ tour about flashy chandeliers and cushy carpets. This is a discomfiting peek into the glitzy world that often gets lonely and …

AB de Villiers slams critics after Virat Kohli’s blistering knock: ‘Eat That!’ | Ipl News

AB de Villiers slams critics after Virat Kohli’s blistering knock: ‘Eat That!’ | Ipl News

In a fiery defense of his former teammate, South African star AB de Villiers has taken a bold stand against critics of Virat Kohli, particularly targeting remarks made by legends Sunil Gavaskar and Virender Sehwag. Following Kohli’s scintillating 62-run innings against Chennai Super Kings, which propelled Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to a narrow two-run victory and the top of the IPL points table, De Villiers didn’t hold back. In a video shared on Instagram, he showed past criticisms from Gavaskar and Sehwag, who had previously questioned Kohli’s strike rate. Sehwag had notably criticised Kohli for scoring the joint-slowest century in IPL history, suggesting he should have accelerated after reaching his half-century. Gavaskar, too, had engaged in a well-documented back-and-forth with Kohli over his scoring pace. Addressing the media directly, De Villiers remarked, “Virat is always there. He is Mr. Safety for RCB. When he is there, you don’t have to fear. Never fear when Virat is near. That is the story. Nothing has ever changed, and what I want to tell all of you media …

Most boundaries in IPL: Virat Kohli closes in on milestone 1000 fours and sixes in league | Ipl News

Most boundaries in IPL: Virat Kohli closes in on milestone 1000 fours and sixes in league | Ipl News

The IPL has over the years evolved to become a synonym of boundary-hitting with several international superstars dominating the charts over the years. While West Indies legend pummelled bowlers to dominate the sixes count, India superstar Virat Kohli evolved from a batter who could smash fours at will to one of the most successful six-hitters in the IPL. Kohli now holds the record for the most sixes struck at a single, having surpassed Gayle’s tally of 127 sixes at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. Kohli is the third-highest six-hitter in the league, only behind Gayle and India teammate Rohit Sharma. The 36-year-old, who recently went past the 13,000 runs in T20 cricket, has also smashed over 720 fours in the IPL, only bettered by former India batter Shikhar Dhawan who leads the charts with 768 fours. However, Kohli is on the cusp of becoming the first batter to hit 1000 boundaries (4s plus 6s) in the IPL, currently possessing 998 boundaries on the back of 278 sixes and 720 fours in the league. Here’s …

‘One more shot’: Dinesh Karthik heaps praise on Virat Kohli’s work ethic ahead of CSK vs RCB IPL 2025 match | Ipl News

‘One more shot’: Dinesh Karthik heaps praise on Virat Kohli’s work ethic ahead of CSK vs RCB IPL 2025 match | Ipl News

Virat Kohli’s exemplary work ethic continues to serve as a source of inspiration for his teammates, and the Indian superstar remains committed to raising the bar for himself, said Royal Challengers Bengaluru batting coach Dinesh Karthik on Thursday. Karthik said Kohli remains as hungry as ever to improve and expand his repertoire as a batter. “You speak to him even today – just now as I came out – he wanted to work on one more shot. At this stage of his career, for him to still want to add something new to his game tells you everything about his hunger,” Karthik said. “He just wants to improve and keep raising the bar. That’s what makes him a special player,” he added on the eve of the CSK–RCB clash in Chennai. The former RCB batter who retired at the end of the last IPL season noted that Kohli’s spin game in white-ball cricket has seen a marked improvement despite his recent struggles. Story continues below this ad “He’s coming on some serious runs in the …

‘Virat Kohli has adjusted his style, but he will have big impact in IPL 2025’: Kane Wiliamson | Ipl News

‘Virat Kohli has adjusted his style, but he will have big impact in IPL 2025’: Kane Wiliamson | Ipl News

Virat Kohli’s tweaked batting approaches may have changed the style of his batsmanship, but not his impact and hunger, feels former New Zealand captain Kane Williamson. The Kiwi batting great said that he has little doubt that Kohli will have a “big impact” on the fortunes of Royal Challengers Bengaluru in IPL 2025 after a successful ODI stint with India earlier this month. Kohli displayed glimpses of his old form during the recent Champions Trophy, scoring over 220 runs in the tournament and was adjudged Player of the Match in the semifinal against Australia. The 36-year-old will once again lead the RCB batting line-up from the opening slot. Kohli had also won the Orange Cap with 741 runs in 15 innings last year. Story continues below this ad Kohli, a part of the first RCB XI that featured in the inaugural IPL Match against Kolkata Knight Riders in 2008, will walk out for the Bengaluru side yet again in the first season-opening contest between the sides in 17 years at the Eden Gardens on Saturday. …

IPL 2025: ‘Badshah vs King’ poster featuring Virat Kohli and Shah Rukh Khan triggers meme storm ahead of season opener | Trending News

IPL 2025: ‘Badshah vs King’ poster featuring Virat Kohli and Shah Rukh Khan triggers meme storm ahead of season opener | Trending News

The Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 is just a day away and fans are at fever pitch. As always, the tournament promises thrilling cricket, electrifying performances at the opening ceremony, and, of course, a fresh wave of memes. The season opener on March 22 will see Kolkata Knight Riders take on Royal Challengers Bangalore, but even before the first ball is bowled, the match is already making waves online—thanks to an unexpected reason. The buzz began when IPL’s official broadcaster, Star Sports, released a promotional poster featuring KKR co-owner Shah Rukh Khan face-to-face with RCB’s Virat Kohli, with the tagline: “Badshah vs King”. While meant to build hype, the comparison left many fans puzzled, and social media wasted no time in poking fun at it. Star Sports poster for KKR Vs RCB. pic.twitter.com/NAtTl221BQ — Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) March 19, 2025   Comedian Danish Sait led the charge saying: “Wow, I didn’t know Shah Rukh Khan plays cricket.” Wow, I didn’t know Shahrukh Khan plays cricket. https://t.co/bzhGHq0Ak4 — Danish Sait (@DanishSait) March 19, 2025   Story …

‘Please just stop doing that’: Why Virat Kohli texted AB de Villiers to avoid ‘Ee Sala Cup Namde’ chant for IPL 2025 | Ipl News

‘Please just stop doing that’: Why Virat Kohli texted AB de Villiers to avoid ‘Ee Sala Cup Namde’ chant for IPL 2025 | Ipl News

As the IPL 2025 season approaches, South Africa batting legend AB de Villiers has revealed that he received a stern message from his long-time Royal Challengers Bengaluru teammate Virat Kohli not to utter the franchise’s famous slogan of hope and anticipation, ‘Ee Sala Cup Namde’, anywhere in public. First raised as promotional material ahead of an IPL season seven years ago, the chant, from the perspective of RCB fans, has not tilted the team’s fortunes in converting an IPL title. While they finished runners-up in 2009, 2011 and 2016, RCB, alongside the Delhi Capitals and Punjab Kings, remain the only three sides since the league’s inception in 2008 to not earn the IPL trophy. Hope has turned to exhaustion and frustration and de Villiers said that he has received a direct message from RCB’s former captain Kohli to stay away from the ‘This year the cup will be ours’ chant. “I honestly, said those words the other day and I got a direct message from Virat, and he said, please just stop doing that now. …