Daily Times

NEW DELHI: With the World Test Championship (WTC) final just weeks away, Virat Kohli says he has no intention of tinkering with his technique to add “fancy shots” to his arsenal for the Indian Premier League (IPL). The India stalwart smashed 100 off 63 balls as the Royal Challengers Bangalore chased down their target to beat Sunrisers Hyderabad by eight wickets on Thursday. The former India captain has piled up 538 runs from 13 matches to sit fourth in this season’s leading scorers list but his strike rate of 135.85 is modest for a top-order batter. Kohli has hit 15 sixes compared to 36 by his captain, and the season’s top scorer, Faf du Plessis, and 30 by team mate Glenn Maxwell.

“I’ve never been a guy who tries so many fancy shots, because we have to play 12 months of the year,” Kohli said after collecting the Player of the Match award. “For me, it’s not (about) playing fancy shots and throwing my wicket away. We’ve got test cricket after the IPL, so I’ve got to stay true to my technique and find ways to win games for my team, something that I take a lot of pride in.” Kohli had guided India to the final of the inaugural WTC in 2021 where they lost to New Zealand. He has since been replaced by Rohit Sharma as skipper but his form will be crucial to India’s hopes of beating Australia at the Oval to claim test cricket’s biggest prize.

Kohli’s knock saw him equal Chris Gayle’s record of six IPL centuries while Bangalore, fourth in the points table, inched closer to a playoff berth. Kohli brushed off criticism of his strike rate and said his record speaks for itself. “I don’t really care about what anyone says on the outside, to be honest, because that’s their opinion,” Kohli said.