Virat Kohli
Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) on Wednesday defeated Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) by the narrowest of margins as they clinched a low-scoring thriller in Abu Dhabi.
Chasing 142, Bangalore kept losing wickets at regular intervals, barring the 54-run stand between Devdutt Padikkal and Glenn Maxwell (40 from 25). With 13 needed off the final over bowled by experienced paceman Bhuvneshwar Kumar, AB de Villiers fell short of the target as Bangalore finished on 137/6 in their 20 overs.
Skipper Virat Kohli labelled Glenn Maxwell's run-out as the "game-changing" moment of the contest. The Aussie was short of the crease in the 15th over when he nudged it towards the cover region and tried to steal a quick single.
With 16 points from 13 matches, Bangalore are currently placed third on the points table. They will move to 18 points and have a slim chance of finishing in the top two if they win their last league match against Delhi Capitals (DC) on Friday.
"Having lost a couple of early wickets, rebuilding was key. Maxi's run-out was a game-changing moment. With AB you are never out of the game, but it is about making sure that the guy who's in flow should be on strike," said Kohli after the match.
Kohli also heaped praise on Yuzvendra Chahal, who has picked a wicket in every match of the UAE leg so far. He has picked up 15 wickets in 13 matches so far in the IPL 2021.
Kohli also hailed Hyderabad speedster Umran Malik, who touched the 153kph mark on the fourth delivery of the ninth over
"I think Sunrisers held their nerve and bowled their last few deliveries pretty well to not allow us to get away. Looks like he's back to his best after a layoff. We want him to bowl well. This tournament throws up talent every year, good to see a guy bowling at 150 clicks," Kohli further said.
"Little hiccup in the journey but we will carry on with the same momentum," he signed off.
