Former South Africa captain AB de Villiers has spoken out in favor of his former RCB teammate Virat Kohli on the issue of the latter’s scoring rate in IPL 2024.
Virat Kohli, who opens for the Royal Challengers Bangalore under captain Faf du Plessis, is being attacked for his slow innings pace and strike rate. Expert pundits like Sanjay Manjrekar and Harsha Bhogle, among others, have criticized Kohli for not being able to speed up his innings and for not playing spin as well.
AB de Villiers asks experts how many centuries Virat Kohli has scored
In his latest YouTube video, AB de Villiers asked a direct question to Virat Kohli’s critics. The former explosive RCB batsman asked the experts how many centuries or how many matches of cricket they have played in their lives. de Villiers expressed frustration over Kohli’s criticism and asked people to respect his name.
For what he has done over the years and for being one of the greatest cricketers of all time, AB de Villiers wants Virat Kohli’s critics to take a step back. The 40-year-old further stated that Kohli is one of the best to play in the Indian Premier League.
He then asked “data-driven” experts to tell him how many centuries they have scored in their lives. de Villiers further criticized Kohli’s critics by calling them people who know nothing about cricket.
“Virat Kohli takes criticism for his scoring rate. It’s been going on for too long and now I’m fed up with it. I’m frustrated, to say the least. This guy is one of the best to ever play the game of Cricket.”
“He is unbelievable in the IPL; he plays a certain role for RCB and I have had many of these data-driven experts who keep criticizing this man when you really have no knowledge of the game. How many games of cricket have you had? Have you played ?How many IPL hundreds have you achieved? – said de Villiers through his latest YouTube video.
How has Virat Kohli fared in IPL 2024?
Despite strong criticism of his strike rate, Virat Kohli has completed 500 runs in the Indian Premier League 2024 season. Those 500 runs come from 10 matches with a strike rate of 147.49 at an average of 71.43. His best score has been 113*, which he came against Rajasthan Royals earlier this season.
What has Kohli said about his criticism of the strike rate?
After scoring 70 off 44 at a strike rate of almost 160 against the Gujarat Titans, Virat Kohli lashed out at his critics. While talking to the commentators, Kohli asked people in the commentary box how many times they had won games for his teams.
Kohli admitted that he doesn’t really think about his strike rate and it is the people in the communications booth who often criticize him for that. “You’ve done this, day in and day out. You’ve won games for your team. And I’m not sure if you haven’t been in that situation, sitting and talking about the game from a box.” – said Kohli in Ahmedabad after RCB beat GT.
Read more: