The mentor of the KKR team, Gautam Gambhir, lauds RCB’s performance following their last-over thriller after Virat Kohli receives a warm embrace from him

During Sunday’s Indian Premier League 2024 match between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and the Gautam Gambhir-mentored Kolkata Knight Riders, Virat Kohli was showered with encouragement from the local audience. Matchday 36 of the profitable league saw Kohli make headlines for his on-field antics, which included insulting the Eden Gardens audience and his controversial dismissal.

When the former captain of the RCB marked his bowling run-up in the KKR innings, Kohli pulled a joke on the fans at Eden Park. Before beginning to mark his run-up, the 35-year-old took off his Orange Cap. But as bowler Mohammed Siraj led the RCB bowling attack during the powerplay, Kohli reclaimed his cap from the match official and positioned himself at mid-off.

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Kohli informed him that I would be bringing the ball. Just like Pushpa-style,” the commentator remarked, enjoying Kohli’s brief conversation with Sunil Narine, the KKR opener. It’s interesting to note that after the game, Kohli smiled broadly when he saw Gambhir. At the Eden Gardens, the 2011 World Cup winner hugged his old India teammate with warmth.

IPL fans took notice of Kohli and Gambhir’s brief post-match conversation on social media. Following Kolkata’s thrilling victory in the last over, KKR shared a picture of Gambhir and Kohli on X, the former name of Twitter. “Game recognizes game,” KKR wrote as the post’s caption. Gambhir also praised the ‘phenomenal’ RCB team following KKR’s historic victory over Faf du Plessis’ team at Eden Gardens. “RCB demonstrated incredible character today,” Gambhir wrote in his post.

Karn Sharma’s futile last-over assault:

In the final over of the thrilling match in Kolkata, Karn Sharma’s attack on star fast bowler Mitchell Starc restored RCB’s hopes of victory. In the 20th over, with 21 runs needed in the final over, Sharma hit two sixes against Starc. With a spectacular comeback, Starc defeated Sharma with his return catch. Tailender Lockie Ferguson was out of the game as KKR defeated RCB by one run on the last ball.

In a T20 Match, the highest all-out totals were achieved by KKR versus RCB. Andre Russell, of KKR, won Player of the Match honors for his all-around heroics against RCB. The KKR team, led by Shreyas Iyer, is ranked second in the IPL 2024 standings. This season, the two-time winners have five victories and two losses. “Tried to get as many runs as I could for Starc. Russell remarked after the game, “I looked at bowling six deliveries to DK and mixed it up, and thankfully it worked. He wasn’t getting off the strike.”