Royal Challengers Bangalore are all set to take on Kolkata Knight Riders in match number 36 of IPL 2023 at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bangalore on Wednesday. Ahead of the game, RCB star batter Virat Kohli and pacer Mohammed Siraj got engaged in a high-intense match-up during the net practice at the Stadium.
In a video posted by RCB on their social media, Kohli and Siraj can be seen taking on each other during the net session. First, Siraj completely beat Kohli on the first two deliveries and was even appreciated by the batter for his swing. After that, Kohli took charge by hitting him continuously and getting in momentum.
After the session, Siraj said that he tried to bowl in the length as he is doing in the ongoing season during the powerplay. He also praised Kohli for his batting and mentioned that he is in great form. The video has since gone viral.
Watch the video here:
Virat vs Siraj in the nets was a high intense quality match up! Here’s how the duo prepared for this evening’s big clash against KKR.#PlayBold #????RCB #IPL2023 #RCBvKKR pic.twitter.com/rBZKpgqB9z
— Royal Challengers Bangalore (@RCBTweets) April 26, 2023
RCB will look to settle scores with KKR
Talking about the upcoming game, both RCB and KKR will play against each other for the second time in the season. In their first face-off at Eden Gardens, KKR registered a huge victory by 81 runs.
Batting first, KKR registered a big total of 204 for the loss of 7 wickets, powered by the blistering knock by Shardul Thakur, who got out after smashing 68 runs off just 29 balls, while Rahmnaullah Gurbaz (57 off 44) and Rinku Singh (46 off 33) also played vital knocks. In reply, RCB were bowled out for just 123 runs in 17.4 overs. Varun Chakravarthy was the main anchor was KKR’s bowling as he took 4 wickets by conceding 15 runs in 3.4 overs.
However, talking about the current form of both teams, RCB is coming after back-to-back wins against Punjab Kings and Rajasthan Royals, respectively, by defending totals, while KKR lost their winning momentum and went on to lose their last five games continuously.
For RCB, Kohli, Faf du Plessis, and Glenn Maxwell have shown great form with the bat and have been carrying the batting lineup in the ongoing season so far. Apart from them, none of the other batters has been able to make an impact. While Siraj has been tremendous with the ball in the powerplay, Harsahl Patel was also looking in good touch in the last game against RR. Apart from that, Josh Hazlewood’s inclusion in the squad could provide more strength to the RCB bowling lineup.
Talking about KKR, there big players like Andre Russell and Sunil Narine haven’t been able to make a big impact till now. However, their skipper Nitish Rana and Venkatesh Iyer have played some good knocks in the season, while Rinku Singh has been continuing his great form in every match.
