BANGALORE – Skipper Virat Kohli smashed his first half-century of this Indian Premier League season for Royal Challengers Bangalore to become the highest ever run-scorer in the Twenty20 tournament on Friday.
Kohli bludgeoned 84 runs off 49 balls to reach 5 110 runs against Kolkata Knight Riders, surpassing Chennai Super Kings batsman Suresh Raina’s record of 5 086 runs.
The India captain put together a 108-run second-wicket partnership with South African great AB de Villiers, who hit 63 off 32 balls.
Bangalore posted 205/3 in 20 overs in search of their first victory of the season after suffering four consecutive losses.
Kohli, who is under fire for the lacklustre showing of his team that has never won an IPL title, took the opposition bowling apart with nine fours and two big sixes.
He reached his 35th IPL 50 – coming after seven innings – with a boundary off leg-spinner Piyush Chawla as the home crowd erupted with applause.
De Villiers also joined the party with some lusty hitting to bring up his fifty with a boundary off paceman Prasidh Krishna.
His blitz was studded with five fours and four sixes.
Kohli was caught and bowled by left-arm wrist spinner Kuldeep Yadav, before Sunil Narine had De Villiers trudging back to the pavilion.
Marcus Stoinis played a crucial cameo of 28 not out to take Bangalore past the 200-run mark.
Rab ne bana di Jodi!!!! 172-1 from 17 overs!!!! #playBold #RCBvKKR #vivoIPL2019 pic.twitter.com/MSwpg9U0t8
— Royal Challengers (@RCBTweets) April 5, 2019