Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar praised Royal Challengers Bengaluru star Virat Kohli for silencing critics in the ongoing IPL, saying that the batting maestro proved that the “old generation is still the best” with his unbeaten century against Kolkata Knight Riders.
Following two consecutive ducks, the 37-year-old Kohli scored an unbeaten century on Wednesday to lead Royal Challengers Bengaluru to a six-wicket victory over KKR and take the lead in the teams standings.
“Virat Kohli was absolutely outstanding against KKR. He knows how to construct a chase better than most,” PTI quoted Gavaskar as saying on Star Sports’ ‘Amul Cricket Live’.
“While everyone was talking about this being the season of ‘Gen Next’, Kohli showed he is still around. He silenced the doubters with a century and moved to third in the Orange Cap race. Не proved that the old generation is still the best.”
Gavaskar noted that Kohli’s records might remain unbeaten for a very long time and emphasized his incredible consistency in the shortest format.
“When it comes to T20 centuries, he is third on the list with 10, behind Chris Gayle and Babar Azam. But he is the fastest to 14,000 T20 runs and has nine IPL hundreds. Records are there to be broken, but it will take a very long time for anyone to match what Kohli keeps delivering, game after game, season after season. This hundred from Virat Kohli was one of those special moments that remind us of his greatness,” he said.
Gavaskar also cited KKR’s dropped catch of Kohli as a pivotal moment in the match.
“Before this RCB-KKR game, KKR’s efficiency with catches was still the best in the IPL this season. But this one hurt badly,” he said.
“Rovman Powell had the chance to dismiss Virat Kohli early. He went up high, timed his jump well, but the ball slipped out. You cannot drop Kohli early in his innings. He will make you pay every single time. He scored a hundred and made KKR regret that drop. That is what great players do. They don’t give you a second chance.”
