With the change in leadership at RCB, the IPL could see Virat Kohli from the 2016 season when he racked up over 900 runs, Sunil Gavaskar calculates.
PBKS vs RCB: Sunil Gavaskar makes a bold prediction for Virat Kohli in IPL 2022 (Courtesy BCCI/PTI Photo)
HIGHLIGHTS
- Virat Kohli relinquished RCB captain ahead of the 2022 IPL season
- With the leadership change at RCB, we may actually see Kohli from 2016: Gavaskar
- Kohli will only take the field as a player in RCB’s season opener
Great hit Sunil Gavaskar believes IPL 2022 could witness Virat Kohli from 2016 season with lead change at Royal Challengers Bangalore in which he scored more than 900 runs which broke the record.
Kohli will appear on the field only as a player in RCB’s season opener against the Punjab Kings at DY Patil Stadium in Navi Mumbai Stadium on Sunday. Kohli has a great record with the racquet as RCB captain, where he hit 4881 runs in 140 IPL games.
During a gameplan episode on Star Sports, the official broadcaster of the IPL, Gavaskar said: “At the moment we don’t know if Kohli will be captain again. Sometimes when a player is relieved of the captain’s burden, he thrives. He doesn’t think about 10 other players.
“When you’re captain you think about 10 other players and sometimes the other members of your squad, their form or lack of form and things they’re not doing right, which is good when they’re getting it right on the team.
“This season we might actually see the Kohli from 2016 as he hit almost 1000 runs in the IPL season.” The last time Kohli didn’t lead the RCB was in 2012, after which he took over the captaincy of the team from New Zealander Daniel Vettori.
Speaking of Australia star all-rounder Glenn Maxwell, Gavaskar said: “Maxwell’s cricket depends on how he approaches each inning. There are times when his approach was incredibly fantastic, and then there are times when he wasn’t that great.
“Last season he was on a team with Virat Kohli and ABD, two of the best batsmen the game has seen and maybe he improved his game. He’s been raising the level of his game to try and keep up with it.
“If he tells himself I’m going to do what ABD did for RCB, then RCB could have a real magical season from Maxwell.”
