Kamal Ghorui
Virat Kohli guided Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s (RCB) chase with a steady knock as they beat Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) by five wickets in their IPL match on Wednesday.Chasing 147, Kohli got RCB off to a strong start and scored 49 off 34 balls, hitting six fours and one six. He looked set for his 66th IPL half-century but was dismissed on 49, caught by Nicholas Pooran off Avesh Khan while attempting a shot in the air towards long-on. Actor and wife of Virat Kohli, Anushka Sharma, who was present at the stadium, reacted with disappointment to his dismissal.This was the first time that Virat Kohli was dismissed on 49 in his IPL career. Despite missing out on the half-century, he claimed the Orange Cap with a tally of 228 runs in the tournament so far. Earlier, fast bowler Rasikh Salam Dar returned figures of 4/24 to lead RCB’s bowling effort. Bhuvneshwar Kumar (3/27) and Krunal Pandya (2/38) also took wickets, while Josh Hazlewood picked up one.After being asked to bat, LSG were bowled out for 146, their lowest total of the season. Mitchell Marsh (40 off 32) and Ayush Badoni (38 off 24) were the main contributors.In the chase, Rajat Patidar (27) and Jitesh Sharma (23) added quick runs as RCB reached 149 for 5 in 15.1 overs.For LSG, Prince Yadav (3/32) and Avesh Khan (2/23) shared the wickets.The defending champions have climbed to the top spot with eight points to their name in five matches. LSG, on the other hand, are at the seventh place with four points in as many matches.
