The former India opener Akash Chopra had criticised Virat Kohli’s innings against the Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede. He stated that the knock that Virat had played was slow and that it did not match the momentum of the game. The Royal Challengers Bengaluru had put up a total of 240 on board and Virat Kohli’s knock did not affect them as much. However, he emphasized that when you look at the innings from a cricketing lens, it was a very slow knock.

“Virat Kohli actually scored very slow runs. If you look at it in the context of the match, you feel it doesn’t matter as you won, but if you see it from the cricketing lens, it was a very slow knock. This kind of knock is unbecoming of this contest, and neither is it becoming of Virat,” said Akash Chopra on his YouTube channel.

Fans defend Kohli’s intent and role alongside Phil Salt as injury concerns loom ahead of LSG clash

Virat Kohli did have the intent as he was trying to switch gears but it simply wasn’t coming off. He did waste two reviews as well but it didn’t impact the RCB batters as there didn’t come a situation when they needed it. Virat Kohli didn’t celebrate his half-century as he knew that his knock was slow and that he needed to convert his innings. However, it didn’t seem to be possible as he was dismissed by Hardik Pandya in the 15th over and Virat Kohli threw his helmet and gloves in frustration.

“He was trying, but it just did not come off. In fact, he was probably so distracted that he wasted two reviews on wide balls. That just told me something about his mindset. He was injured as well. Maybe that is a bit of an issue because it was the first time I didn’t see him come to field. So he was injured and the knock was slow as well,” Akash Chopra added.

The Royal Challengers Bengaluru fans did not receive Aakash Chopra’s criticism of Virat Kohli very well. They claimed that Phil Salt was timing the ball to perfection and almost every time he got a good connection, the ball ended up in the boundary. So, the role of Virat Kohli in the innings was to give Phil Salt the strike as much as possible and the fans defended their idol. The fans also lashed out at Aakash Chopra’s stats in international cricket and claimed that he doesn’t have the right to criticise Virat Kohli. They also claimed that Virat Kohli had undergone an injury and maybe that’s the reason why the former RCB captain couldn’t get going well.

Virat Kohli has scored 179 runs from 4 innings in the season and he has two half centuries to his name as well. His strike rate is at 162 and he has been able to accelerate for the side when required. He anchored the chase against the Sunrisers Hyderabad in the opening game brilliantly well. The Royal Challengers Bengaluru have always stood by Virat Kohli and they wouldn’t accept any form of criticism against him.

With Virat Kohli likely to miss the game against Lucknow Super Giants, the RCB fans will dearly miss him. The admiration and stardom that Virat Kohli has at Bengaluru is like none other and he will be hopeful that he can return to the side as soon as possible and lead their charge to title defence.