Virat Kohli breaks silence after RCB’s heartbreaking exit from IPL 2023
Breaking his silence after Royal Challengers Bangalore’s (RCB) unceremonious exit from the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023, former India captain Virat Kohli has bemoaned the below-par season performance of Faf du Plessis and Co. in the 16th edition of the cash-rich league.
Despite starting as one of the strong title contenders, the Kohli-starrer side failed to reach the business end of the celebrated tournament. RCB have gone 16 editions without lifting the IPL trophy.
Bangalore were outplayed by defending champions Gujarat Titans (GT) in the final league game of the IPL 2023 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday. Taking to Twitter after RCB’s exit from IPL, Kohli penned an emotional note to express gratitude to the Bangalore fans for their overwhelming support throughout the season. “A season which had it’s moments but unfortunately we fell short of the goal. Disappointed but we must hold our heads high. To our loyal supporters, grateful for backing us every step of the way,” Kohli said in his tweet.
The Bangalore giants were tasked to beat defending champions Gujarat Titans in their final league game of the season at Bengaluru. Former RCB skipper Kohli played a sublime knock against Pandya and Co. in match No.70 of the IPL 2023. The batting icon smashed a brilliant century to help Bangalore post a challenging total of 197-5 in 20 overs. However, Kohli’s record-breaking knock went in vain as Shubman Gill-inspired GT hammered RCB by 6 wickets in the high-scoring encounter. Gill played an unbeaten knock of 104 off 52 balls to shatter RCB’s playoff hopes in the IPL 2023.
RCB’s heartbreaking defeat also confirmed Mumbai Indians’ (MI) qualification for the playoff stage of the ongoing season. Rohit Sharma’s MI side defeated Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in their final league game to seal the fourth and final playoff spot this season. Run-machine Kohli, who shattered multiple records in the IPL 2023, amassed 639 runs in 14 matches. Averaging 53.25, the 34-year-old slammed two centuries and six half-centuries in the 16th season of the cash-rich league.