IPL 2024: Rating Opening Pairs after the first game of each team

4. Faf du Plessis and Virat Kohli- 7/10

In the inaugural contest between CSK and Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) at the MA Chidambaram Stadium, the visiting side failed to save a total of 173 and started their tournament with a six-wicket defeat. At the toss, Bengaluru skipper Faf du Plessis won against Ruturaj Gaikwad and chose to bat first.

Du Plessis along with Virat Kohli opened the innings and looked attacking with his bat. In the fifth over, Mustafizur Rahman trapped him with the assistance of Rachin Ravindra, who was deployed at deep point. The Challengers skipper lost his wicket after notching up 35 runs with eight fours. Following Du Plessis, Rajat Patidar and Glenn Maxwell returned to the dugout without scoring any runs.

Kohli stood at the crease for a long time but looked under pressure due to the loss of early wickets. His job was to show nerves of steel and escape the team from the crisis but he also failed to handle the pressure and became Rahman’s third victim. His contribution was only 21 runs after facing 20 balls.