The legendary Australia National Cricket Team batsman Matthew Hayden has backed the star Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batsman Virat Kohli to rewrite history books with his performances in the remainder of the Indian Premier League 2024 (IPL 2024).
Heading into the IPL 2024, there were question marks over the performance of Virat Kohli in T20 cricket and many also raised doubts over his selection in India’s ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024 squad. The batting superstar played tremendous cricket throughout the league stage and once again shut the mouths of his critics with his stupendous performances.
He currently occupies the No.1 spot in the Indian Premier League 2024 Orange Cap list with 708 runs in 14 league stage matches at an average of 64.36. Kohli had made his runs at a good strike rate of 155.60 and has slammed 37 sixes with his best score being 113*.
The consistent performances delivered by Virat Kohli have played a key role in RCB’s unbelievable turnaround in the Indian Premier League 2024 as the Faf du Plessis-led side lost 7 out of their first 8 matches but bounced back strong to win 6 matches on the trot to finish inside the top 4.
He could go well past his IPL 2016 performance in the kind of form that he’s in – Matthew Hayden on Virat Kohli
Looking at Virat Kohli dominating with the bat in IPL 2024, Matthew Hayden, who recently slammed the batter for hijacking the field and engaging in heated chats with umpires, backed the former RCB captain to better his 2016 performance and unlock a new IPL milestone.
Notably, Virat Kohli still holds the record for most runs in an IPL season by a batter as he slammed 973 runs from 16 matches in IPL 2016 at an average of 81.08 and a strike-rate of 152.03 with 4 hundreds and 7 fifties. Many felt that Shubman Gill would break his record last year but the GT captain fell short by a big margin as he finished with 890 runs.
Meanwhile, with Virat Kohli being just 266 runs behind his tally from 2016, Matthew Hayden believes that the former RCB skipper is highly committed and can break his own record quite easily.
“We are looking at Virat Kohli celebrating his second-best season thus far. He could go well past his IPL 2016 performance in the kind of form that he’s in. So more than anything, I just think it’s the energy and the love of the game, the passion, the commitment for it all—all of those describing words that you can glorify this great man with, whether it be on the field or with the bat in hand. He just loves it; it’s crazy,” Hayden told Star Sports
Matthew Hayden further highlighted Virat Kohli’s shush celebration after the dismissal of Ajinkya Rahane during the RCB vs CSK virtual knockout match. He said that Kohli does all that because he is highly committed to the game.
“The thing is, he’s so committed. And he gives it to the crowd as well. There were a couple of moments where he was telling CSK fans to be quiet,” Hayden added.
Virat Kohli can play a maximum of three more matches in the Indian Premier League 2024 given the condition RCB reach the final. Royal Challengers Bengaluru first have to beat Rajasthan Royals in the Eliminator on May 22 in Ahmedabad if they wish to progress further into the tournament.
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