IPL 2023: We want to take one game at a time, says RCB’s Virat Kohli after dominant win against MI

Royal Challengers’ Virat Kohli’s unbeaten 82 went a long way in securing Bangalore’s victory against the Mumbai Indians on Sunday.
Kohli with captain Faf du Plessis opened the batting and built a partnership of 148 runs in a chase of 172.
“I thought it was a phenomenal win, a homecoming after 4 years. Couldn’t have asked for a better game. We bowled well for the first 17 overs but then credit to their batters especially Tilak who batted really well. It was a very comprehensive win and we wanted to win with balls to spare as it will benefit the NRR,” Kohli said while talking about the win.
“The new ball was tricky, that’s where we shifted the momentum, they can ride on that momentum from the last two overs of their batting but the way we started nullified all that momentum. We kept the pressure on the bowlers,” he added when asked about his and Faf’s partnership in the middle.
Kohli also lavished praise on Karn Sharma who starred with 2 wickets, with one of them being the dangerous Tim David while the other was of Nehal Wadhera who was building a steady partnership with Tilak Varma.
“I think he was phenomenal, phenomenal spell from him, that’s brave bowling after getting the left-hander out [on Karn Sharma]. He was bowling so well for us last year but he couldn’t play. Even in the nets he was not getting hit for sixes, hats off to him for coming and playing after so long, to perform against such a strong MI side at the Chinnaswamy is great for him,” Kohli said.
The former RCB captain also talked about his side’s chances of winning the IPL this year, saying that they were taking one game at a time.
“I wanted to mention this for a while – after MI who have 5 titles and CSK who have 4, if I’m not wrong, we are the third team to have qualified the most times to the playoffs – 8 times. Take one game at a time and try to be a balanced side which we are and we would look to execute our plans as we did tonight,” he said.
Before signing off, he thanked the crowd at the Chinnaswamy stadium who were behind the side throughout the match. “Phenomenal, it was a packed crowd, every seat was full when we walked in here. Very important we started off well, their support propelled us and that makes a massive difference,” Kohli said.
MI skipper Rohit Sharma rued that they were 30-40 runs short on this track and also blamed the bowlers for failing to execute the plans.
“Didn’t have a great start with the bat in the first six overs. But, it was a really good effort from Tilak and a few other batters. But, we didn’t execute well with the ball. It was a good pitch to bat on,” Rohit said.
“We didn’t set any target but we didn’t even bat to half of our potential and we got to 170. Probably 30-40 runs more would have been ideal.” MI reached a competitive 171 for two, primarily due to the sensational knock of 84 Tilak Varma and Rohit doffed his hat to the young left-handed batter.
“He is a positive person, quite talented as well. Some of the shots he played, showed a lot of courage. Hats off to Tilak to get us to a competitive total.” MI missed the services of injured pacer Jasprit Bumrah.
“From the last six to eight months I am used to playing without Jasprit Bumrah. Of course this is a different setup but someone needs to put their hand up and step up. We can’t keep dwelling on it. Injuries are not in our control.”