IPL 2020: Irfan Pathan cites Virat Kohli's knock to reason why fitness is key for athletes

Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan was all praise for Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli as the latter guided his side to a commendable total with a 90-run knock. Virat Kohli's knock wasn't a typical T20 knock and certainly not in the conditions in UAE, with the mercury levels soaring. The Bangalore skipper's 90 run knock saw just 4 sixes and 4 boundaries but saw a huge amount of runs collected by running in between the wickets, something that Irfan Pathan pinpointed as a key that all athletes must possess. 

Taking to Twitter, Irfan Pathan pointed out that Virat Kohli had taken 28 singles and 11 doubles during his knock under the hot conditions in Dubai and that he did so without getting exhausted. Irfan Pathan said Virat Kohli's running between the wickets in such tough conditions was a prime example of why fitness is key for all athletes. Players have struggled to run between the wickets so far owing to the heat, with many players including the likes of MS Dhoni who had exhausted themselves by sprinting between the wickets. 

READ | IPL 2020: Kohli Terms Bangalore's Win Over Chennai As One Of Their 'complete Performances'

Irfan Pathan hails Virat Kohli's fitness

READ | IPL 2020: Sunil Gavaskar Gets 'flying Kisses' From Netizens As Virat Gets One From Anushka

'It was one of our most complete performances': Virat Kohli

"It was one of our most complete performances. We got into a bit of a tricky position in the first half. From there on, we pushed forward. We spoke during the second timeout that 140-150 would be good. Ended up getting more than that. It was a tricky pitch. Really pleased to get two points. We have back-to-back games coming up, so important to build momentum," said Kohli during the post-match session.

He added, "It's about understanding the conditions and respecting the game. Instead of trying to hit every ball into the second tier of the stadium. Having played so much cricket, especially T20 cricket, I have learned that if you are set at the death, you can capitalize. Before that, I was trying to do too much. If you think too much about responsibility, you get burdened. That Super Over where I had to strike, else we would have lost, freed me up. Training all these days also helped. Yes, he's (Chris Morris, who played his first match of the season) been really good, gun on the field and three wickets on debut. With him and Gurkeerat, the batting also gets deep. When you get momentum in this format, it can be the difference between finishing at the top or at the bottom."

READ | IPL 2020: Anushka Sharma's Flying Kiss To Virat Kohli's Hand-on-heart Moment 'wins' Match

Bangalore beat Chennai

Bangalore skipper Virat Kohli labelled his team's performance against southern rivals Chennai as one of their most complete performances. Bangalore beat Chennai by 37 runs in the Dream11 IPL 2020 league match at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium on Saturday. Virat Kohli's unbeaten 90 powered the three-time finalists to a competitive total of 169/4 in their 20 overs. In reply, the three-time champions' run chase was not up to the mark as they were playing a catch-up game after having lost early wickets as the asking rate kept on getting steeper. Ambati Rayudu top-scored with 42 as the former champions were restricted to 132/8. Kohli was adjudged the Man of the Match for his stellar knock.

READ | Virat Kohli's 52-ball 90 Floors Netizens, Bangalore Captain Crosses 6000-run Mark For Team