Virat Kohli looked in his elements on Saturday (April 6) at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur and forced the Rajasthan Royals bowling attack to re-strategise multiple times during the game.
The 35-year-old batted superbly and scored his first century of IPL 2024. He remained unbeaten till the end and accumulated 113 runs off just 72 balls.
Virat's knock included 12 fours and four sixes and came at a strike rate of 156.94. However, none of his other teammates managed to get going at a fiery strike rate and it meant that RCB failed to cross the 200-run mark at the end and had to settle for 183 despite having seven wickets in their kitty.
Virat's century on Saturday was his eighth overall in the cash-rich league and his third in a losing cause. Notably, Virat has become the first player with three IPL centuries in a losing cause - the most in the competition.
Earlier, he was tied alongside the Rajasthan Royals skipper Sanju Samson and Hashim Amla with two centuries in losing causes.
The first time Virat recorded a century in a losing cause was in 2016 when he scored 100 off 63 balls against Gujarat Lions (GL). The same incident unfolded last season when Virat struck a century against the then-defending champions Gujarat Titans and a ton by Shubman Gill trumped Virat's and the RCB fans ended up disappointed again.
The loss to Rajasthan has raised huge question marks on RCB yet again. They started with a loss to Chennai Super Kings in the season opener but defeated Punjab Kings (PBKS) at home to display signs of promise. However, the win against PBKS seems a forgotten case now as they are now on a three-match losing streak.
RCB's next game is against the five-time IPL champions Mumbai Indians (MI) at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai on April 11.
