IPL: Ever-evolving Virat Kohli sheds fear of failure, rediscovers weapon to tackle spin

Virat Kohli was not angry. He wasn’t looking to take a swipe at his naysayers. He did not come across as someone who is stubborn about his T20 game.

After playing one of his most aggressive knocks in the recent past — a 47-ball 92 against PBKS in an IPL 2024 game Dharamsala, the RCB star explained why he would be the last person to not notice flaws in his game and work on them. A more calm and composed Kohli was a listener’s delight as the legendary batter shed light on his hunger for more success and his incredible ability to be fired up throughout a contest.

“For me, it’s still quality over quantity. More so now, at this stage of my career, heading into 36. The understanding of my game over so many years allows me to practice less, and still stay mentally switched on. And some added challenges in terms of improving your own game. Certain aspects of the game, you want to get better at. It’s an ever-evolving process. I am not a guy who wants to sit around saying ‘this is the way I play’ and not improve on the things I need to,” Virat Kohli said after RCB’s 60-run win in Dharamsala.

There was plenty of chatter around Virat Kohli’s strike rate in the first half of the season. The ‘outside noise’ only grew louder when RCB lost a game in which he scored 113 off 72 balls against Rajasthan at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium. Fans and pundits questioned Kohli’s T20 game, wondering whether it was outdated. His weaknesses against spin and his inability to accelerate after the powerplay were on display during their game in Hyderabad. Kohli managed just 19 runs from 25 runs after the powerplay in his 45-ball 51. “Virat Kohli is like a soda bottle. A pop when it opens and then fizzles out!” is how a fan described him after the laboured knock.

However, the former captain has let his bat do the talking and made a statement with his match-winning contributions to RCB in their last three games – 70 off 44 against Gujarat in Ahmedabad, 42 off 27 against Gujarat in Bengaluru and 47-ball 92 against Punjab in Dharamsala.

REDISCOVERING OLD WEAPON TO TACKLE SPIN
Virat Kohli was at his big-hitting best on Thursday as he put on a show for the crowd at the HPCA Stadium in Dharamsala. Kohli employed the slog-sweeps to great effect, hitting the likes of Liam Livingstone and the slower ones from Sam Curran into the mid-wicket stands. Kohli was ruthless as he did not miss a single opportunity to send them flying into the stands, hitting as many as 6 sixes and 7 boundaries. Kohli’s 94m slog sweep against Curran in the 16th over of their innings was not just an awe-inspiring shot, but a statement amid all the chatter.

Virat Kohli acknowledged that his decision to bring back the slog-sweep from slumber has helped him tackle his problems against spin.

“I brought out the slog-sweep to the spinners. It was me mentally putting myself in that situation. I did not practice that at all. I know I can hit it because I have played that shot a lot in the past. So I just felt like I needed to take a bit more risk and for me, that shot was something that I used to hit regularly back in the days. That shot is now allowing me to hit off the backfoot as well. I am always looking to expose that side of the field against the spin. It’s been a massive factor for me in the IPL,” he added.

The numbers don’t lie. Last year, Kohli scored 639 runs in the IPL. However, he struggled against spin, after the powerplays. Kohli struck at just 113.46 against spin, managing only 4 sixes against them. This season, he has scored 261 runs against spin at a strike rate of 138.82. He has hit 15 boundaries and 13 sixes against the spinners.

SHEDDING FEAR OF FAILURE

Kohli conceded that he was a little sceptical about taking risks in T20s in the recent past and that he decided to go all-out in IPL 2024 after having equipped himself better to deal with his flaws.

“It just takes a bit more conviction and put out that thought that props up ‘what if I get out?’. I have been managing to stay ahead of that thought. And that has allowed me to keep my strike rate up in the middle overs and scoring for my team as well,” he added.

Virat Kohli became only the second man after KL Rahul to go past 600 runs for the fourth time in an IPL season. The RCB star is in firm possession of the Orange Cap, having taken his tally to 634 runs in 12 matches at a healthy strike rate of 153.

With a lot more clarity and the ability to acknowledge his weaknesses, the batting genius is finding ways to evolve in the shortest format of the game. Kohli is going to the T20 World Cup, going to the USA and the West Indies hungrier than ever. Beware!