Tom Moody believes that Virat Kohli was significantly helped by batting with Faf du Plessis in the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) vs. Mumbai Indians (MI) IPL opener on Sunday, April 2.
He figured that du Plessis playing his shots right from the outset took a great deal of tension off Kohli.
During a discussion on ESPNcricinfo, the cricketer-turned-commentator commented on the two RCB openers as follows: “There was a real sense of companionship, comfort, and mutual respect there. That certainly alleviates the stress of any circumstance in which you must substitute for someone else.”
“When you have someone like Faf playing with that kind of freedom, it also helps; “Especially when you’ve spent the last couple of years playing a little bit uncertainly and losing a little bit of rhythm, you almost kind of draw on that energy yourself,” he added.
Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli put together a fantastic 148-run stand for the first wicket as the team chased 172 runs. Kohli remained unbeaten on 82 and led his team to an eight-wicket victory, even though the RCB captain left the field after scoring 73 runs.
Deep Dasgupta on Virat Kohli’s return to form: “The break that he took really helped him to refocus and reignite the fire in him.” :
During the previous IPL season, Virat Kohli was scrutinized for his prolonged lean patch with the bat. Deep Dasgupta, a former cricketer, believes that the senior batter’s slump was caused by his mental state. Dasgupta elaborated on his claim that Kohli has benefited greatly from his absence from the game during the same discussion, saying:
“The manner in which he (Virat Kohli) has been batting across three formats over the past six or seven months. Since the Asia Cup, he has been absolutely brilliant. He always hit the ball well. Recently, it occurred to me that there had been nothing technical or cricket-related to do.
“I thought he wasn’t in the right psyche space, whatever was happening in his mind. I believe that the time off he took really helped him refocus and rekindle his passion. On Thursday, April 6, Virat Kohli will play for RCB against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) at Eden Gardens in Kolkata.
