Faf du Plessis, the usual captain of Royal Challengers Bangalore, continued to play primarily as a batsman owing to an injury that limits his fielding capabilities, thus Virat Kohli walked out for the toss for the third time in a row. At Bengaluru’s Chinaswamy Stadium, where the audience was at capacity, Kohli made the decision to bowl first after winning the toss against the Kolkata Knight Riders to great applause. The applause came in two waves: first, when Kohli took the lead once more, and second, when he won the toss.
Kohli speaks at the toss
When former India head coach Ravi Shastri questioned Kohli about his thoughts at toss time, Kohli, who resigned as RCB captain prior to the 2017 IPL, replied that the sensation of leading the team is nothing new to him.
“It was unexpected but nothing that I’m not used to,” Kohli said with a smile.
“The planning was good, the guys have been playing great cricket. So it wasn’t difficult for me to step in and just handle things a little bit. Obviously, (when you are captain) you see things a little differently. I do certain things on the field instinctively, which comes naturally,” he added.
When questioned about du Plessis’ injuries, Virat Kohli responded that the legendary South African should return as captain starting with the following game.
“He will be playing as an Impact Player again. Hopefully, he will be fine by the next game and be back as captain,” Kohli said.
In response to a question on du Plessis’ injuries, Kohli said that the illustrious South African should take over as captain beginning with the next match.
When asked about du Plessis’ injury, Kohli replied that the legendary South African should assume the captaincy starting with the following game.
Why is Shardul not playing
Kulwant Khejroliya was dropped by KKR, who have now dropped four straight games, in favour of right-arm pacer Vaibhav Arora. Unexpectedly, KKR skipper Nitish Rana stated that he would have chosen to bat first so that his spinners could enter the game later in the evening.
“Second half of the tournament has started, it’s an important game. We’ve played some good cricket, some not so good. It’s time to step up. If we play well collectively, the result will be in our favour. In previous games, we’ve had forced changes. Shardul had a niggle, and Gurbaz had a niggle,” he said.
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