The defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) are on a roll in the ongoing season, with them winning eight of their 12 matches to occupy the top of the points table ahead of their game against Punjab Kings on May 17.
Amid all of this, RCB batter Tim David backed senior batter Virat Kohli, stating that the veteran never looked fazed despite enduring a brief lean patch earlier in the season.
Kohli recently bounced back in style with a match-winning century against Kolkata Knight Riders after registering a couple of low scores. However, David revealed that there was never any visible change in Kohli’s mindset or approach during that phase.
“To be honest, he doesn’t change; you wouldn’t have known that he had two ducks unless you’d been watching TV or something else. It was great for him to score a hundred, great for all of our fans to see that, and it was a match-winning performance,” David told broadcasters ahead of the match.
The Australian all-rounder also credited RCB’s impressive campaign this season to the collective efforts of the squad rather than relying solely on individual brilliance.
“We’ve had so many people in our team stepping up this season. Hopefully it’s him again or someone else, but we’re feeling pretty good,” he said.
David further lauded RCB’s top-order batters for their aggressive yet composed approach, which has allowed the middle-order players to settle into defined roles.
“At the top, we have some really classy players. Those guys play good cricketing shots; they make themselves feel confident to play aggressively and express themselves with the depth we’ve got,” David added.
He also admitted that the consistency of the top-order has often limited opportunities for the lower middle-order batters to spend time in the middle.
“We’ve certainly got guys that don’t get enough batting time as much as they’d want because we’re watching the guys put on a clinic at the top,” he noted.
Speaking about his own form this season, David said he has been striking the ball well consistently and remains focused on contributing whenever the team requires him.
“To be honest, I’m just looking forward most of the time. I feel like I’ve been batting really well the whole season. I just want to put in performances for the team. I’ve been hitting the ball really well in training consistently, and hopefully when I get the chance in the middle, I can do whatever the team needs,” he said.
If RCB win their game against PBKS at Dharamsala, they will have a strong chance of finishing in the top-2 in the points table ahead of the IPL playoffs.
