‘Game has moved on from that style’ - Tom Moody criticises Virat Kohli's T20 batting template

Virat Kohli managed to score a half-century in Royal Challengers Bangalore’s game against Delhi Capitals in the ongoing IPL 2023 but his strike rate has been a matter of discussion this season. The 34-year-old scored 55 off 46 as the visiting team posted 181 after 20 overs at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi.

Talking about Kohli's tempo, former Sunrisers Hyderabad coach Tom Moody stated that the opener’s style of cricket does not suit in the modern-day. Moody believes the need of an anchor does not exist in T20 cricket anymore and Kohli needs to have a strike over 150 to make a significant impact in the game.

“Will always have this debate because it is the Virat Kohli template. It’s the way he bats. His career strike rate is around 130. His ability to continue to churn out runs is quite extraordinary,” Moody told ESPNcricinfo.

“But maybe he also felt that whilst the other end was flying along, his role was to feed that other end. But in my view, particularly with the impact player, the game has really moved on from that style of cricket. That’s why we are seeing so many totals go to 200+. There is no such role. We all need to be going here at 150+ without a doubt because we have the comfort of depth,” the 57-year-old added.

DC defeated RCB by seven wickets

Even though RCB posted a healthy total, their bowlers could not defend as Delhi Capitals’ batters were on song. Opener Phil Salt played an extraordinary innings, scoring 87 off 45 as he set the tone for the middle-order batters to chip in and help the team win. Skipper David Warner looked sharp as well but could not make much of an impact as he fell for 22 off 16.

On the other hand, Rilee Rossouw played some brilliant cricket, scoring an unbeaten 35 off 22 deliveries. Based on a solid batting performance, DC chased the target down with 20 balls remaining. With that, they now moved to number nine on the IPL Points Table while RCB remains at number five.