IPL 2020: Sunil Gavaskar questions RCB captain Virat Kohli’s tactics against KXIP
Dubai: Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar has questioned Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Virat Kohli’s tactics against Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) in IPL 2020. RCB suffered a huge loss to the KL Rahul-led side in Dubai on Thursday (September 24). It was one of those rare days when Kohli dropped two catches and Rahul made the Bangalore franchise pay heavily as he scored a match-winning century.
FollowThis was RCB’s first loss in the tournament after having started off with a win over Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). RCB were thrashed by KXIP by 97 runs. Skipper Rahul was KXIP’s star with 132 (69 balls, 14x4, 7x6), the highest IPL score by an Indian.
Analysing the game on the host broadcaster Star Sports, Gavaskar questioned Kohli’s approach in the last four overs of KXIP’s batting innings. RCB bowlers were hammered for 74 runs in that period.
"You got to question Virat Kohli's tactics in the last 4 overs. 74 runs in the last 4 overs, you saw who the bowlers were, you wouldn't be too surprised. I thought the last four overs would go for maybe 50 runs but they went for 74 runs. That's too much," Gavaskar said.
The batting legend felt Kohli’s captaincy approach could have impacted due to the dropped catches. "Well, it certainly seems to be the case as far as his tactics were concerned in the last 4 overs because he just dropped KL Rahul in the 70s and the 80s and that may have stayed on his mind."
“So when it came to the last four overs, he wasn't sure who should be bowling them. You don't want to go for 49 runs in the last 2 overs. That's a big difference. At the end of the day, they almost lost by 100 runs, that's another matter. If it had been a matter of chasing 185-190, it would have been a completely different situation. But there you are, in cricket, that's what happens,” he opined.
“However great you are, at the end of the day, you're human. Your feelings are always there, you're always thinking 'oh I should have taken that catch. Is it going to cost me much?'. In trying to think that way, you sometimes tend to think 'should I be moving that fielder there, should I be bowling him'. That can happen,” he added.
