IPL 2020: Virat Kohli gifts Rahul Tewatia a signed jersey after RR vs RCB game

After suffering a narrow defeat against Mumbai Indians in the Super Over, Royal Challengers Bangalore came out strongly and registered a comprehensive eight-wicket victory against Rajasthan Royals at Abu Dhabi. After their commanding victory, Virat Kohli’s troops also paved their way to the top of the IPL 2020 points table.

It was an all-round effort by the Bangalore side, which started with their bowlers denting RR by scalping early wickets. Royals’ three top-order stalwarts– Jos Buttler, Steve Smith and Sanju Samson— were sent back to the pavilion in the Powerplay itself.

The RR side was trembling at 70/4 when Mahipal Lomror stitched a vital 47 off 39 to keep the scoreboard ticking. In the end, the pair of Rahul Tewaia and Jofra Archer, as expected, pulled off a few fireworks to steer Royals to a respectable total of 154. Tewatia hit three sixes to finish on 24* off 12 while Archer gathered 16 off 10 deliveries.

Virat Kohli, Devdutt Padikkal steered RCB to the victory

Coming on to RCB’s run-chase, Kohli’s men did suffer an early blow in the form of Aaron Finch. The experienced Aussie veteran tried to paddle sweep Shreyas Gopal but was rather trapped in front.

After Finch’s early dismissal, youngster Devdutt Padikkal and Virat Kohli stitched a match-winning stand to steer RCB past the finishing line. Padikkal has been in sublime touch this season and the 20-year-old continued his batting antics by slamming a brilliant half-century.

Padikkal amassed 63 off 45 before getting dismissed off a fuller delivery by Jofra Archer. After laying the foundation of RCB’s victory, the Karnataka lad departed in the 16th over, leaving the stage open for skipper Kohli and AB de Villiers.

Skipper Kohli, known for finishing games with his willow, stayed till the end and scored a 53-ball 72 to defy all odds. Kohli’s batting form was a concern of many fans but he finally broke his poor run with the bat. During the course of his impressive 72, the prolific batsman hit 7 fours and 2 sixes. De Villiers also stuck in the middle and hit the winning boundary as RCB sealed the victory with five deliveries to spare.

Kohli certainly had a great outing and he also made Rahul Tewatia’s day after clinching the match. The RCB skipper gifted a signed jersey to the Haryana leggie after the game. Kohli wrote– “Dear Rahul, Best Wishes,” along with gifting Tewatia the signed RCB jersey.

Tewatia has now become a household name after his blistering match-winning inning against Kings XI Punjab. He had slammed a 31-ball 53 including five sixes in an over against Sheldon Cottrell at Sharjah. After scoring only 14 runs off the first 21 balls, Tewatia eventually set the stadium on fire with his carnage.