Vikas Kohli criticized Sanjay Manjrekar for omitting Virat from a list of high-impact IPL batters, highlighting Manjrekar's own ODI strike rate.
Team India and RCB star batter Virat Kohli’s elder brother, Vikas Kohli slammed ex-India cricketer turned commentator Sanjay Manjrekar for his strike analysis of the players in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025.
Virat Kohli is currently playing for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the ongoing IPL season and is in an impressive form, amassing 443 runs, including 6 fifties, at an average of 63.29 in 10 matches. He is one of the strong contenders for the Orange Cap as he is currently second in the list of the leading run-getters of the season. Gujarat Titans’ opener Sai Sudharsan is at the top of the chart with 456 runs, including 5 fifties, at an average of 50.67 in 9 matches.
Kohli was the Orange Cap holder in the last IPL season after being highest run-getter with 741 runs, including a century and 5 fifties, at an average of 61.75 in 15 matches. Kohli already has three Orange Caps in his kitty, with first coming in 2016 when he amassed a record 975 runs, including 4 centuries and 7 fifties, at an average of 81 in 16 matches.
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Did Sanjay Manjrekar take a dig at Kohli?
Ahead of the clash between Kolkata Knight Riders and Punjab Kings on April 26, Sanjay Manjrekar took to his X handle (formerly Twitter) and mentioned the names of the IPL players who have not only scored big runs but also accumulate strike rate of over 150 in the ongoing IPL season.
The list included Nicholas Pooran, Priyansh Arya, Shreyas Iyer, Suryakumar Yadav, Jos Buttler, Mitchell Marsh, Travis Head, Heinrich Klaasen, KL Rahul, and Shubman Gill. However, Manjrekar did not mention Virat Kohli’s name in the list.
Virat Kohli’s strike rate has often come under scrutiny as critics argue despite his consistency and volume of runs, his comparatively lower strike rate, especially during the middle overs, does not always align with the aggressive tempo in the modern day T20 Cricket. In the ongoing IPL season, Kohli is the only batter in the top-10 leading run-getters who has a strike rate of less than 145. Despite amassing 443 runs and averaging 63.29, Kohli strike rate is at 138.87 .
In the match against Delhi Capitals at his home ground, Virat Kohli struggled to get going as he scored 51 off 47 balls at a strike rate of 108 in Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s 163-run chase.
Virat Kohli’s brother takes dig at Manjrekar
Virat Kohli’s elder brother Vikas Kohli certainly felt that Sanjay Manjrekar took an indirect dig at the RCB star batter by excluding his name from the list of impactful batters in the IPL 2025. Vikas took to his ‘Threads’ handle and took a brutal dig at the former India batter by posting his strike rate in ODIs.
“Mr sanjay manjrekar; Career odi strike rate: 64:31; Easy to talk about 200 plus strike rates," Vikas wrote on Threads.
In ODI cricket, Sanjay Manjrekar amassed 1994 runs, including a century and 15 fifties, at an average of 33.23 and a strike rate of 64.31. On the other hand, Virat Kohli has amassed 14181 runs, including 51 centuries and 74 fifties, at an average of 57.88 and a strike rate of 93.34 in 302 matches.
Virat Kohli is the leading run-getter in the history of IPL, amassing 8447 runs, including 8 fifties and 61 fifties, at an average of 39.47 and a strike rate of 132.32 in 262 matches.