IPL 13: Chahal changed the game for us against SunRisers Hyderabad, says Kohli

Sep 22, 2020

Dubai [UAE], September 22 : After winning the match against SunRisers Hyderabad, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) skipper Virat Kohli credited spinner Yuzvendra Chahal with changing the course of the game.
SunRisers Hyderabad stumbled to a 10-run loss against RCB on Monday. The David Warner-led side was not able to chase down the target of 164 runs.
In the match, Chahal finished with figures of 3-18 and he got the crucial wickets of Jonny Bairstow, Manish Pandey and Vijay Shankar.
"We kept our composure tonight. When they needed 43 I think off five, just had a chat in the middle saying no shoulders dropping till the last run is scored. The game can change anytime. And Yuzi (Yuzvendra Chahal) comes in and changes the game completely in that over. Not many other spinners got too much out of the pitch, but tonight he showed that if you have skill in the wrist, you can purchase on any track," Kohli told broadcaster Star Sports at the post-match ceremony.
"That's why he bowls well in Bangalore too. The dew was a big factor tonight, the pitch was decent to bat on in the second half I thought - much better than the first half. But the way he came in, backed his skill and got the ball to turn and bowled attacking lines. He was the one who changed the game, in my opinion," he added.
The RCB skipper said that no one in the team gave up even when SunRisers Hyderabad was going all guns blazing, and he hailed the never-die attitude of the side.
"In the past if we had 43 off five, you would probably see shoulders dropping. The fact that we didn't let the negativity seep into the bowling group even when there was dew and it was difficult to bowl, the guys kept believing and kept bowling attacking areas. Someone like Shivam (Dube) coming in and bowling three proper overs was an outstanding sign for us, a part-timer coming and doing the job means the guys want the opportunity, they want to be in pressure situations. And that's the kind of mindset we want to be in," Kohli said.
SunRisers were 121/2 at one stage and they were looking comfortable in their pursuit of 164. However, Yuzevndra Chahal and Navdeep Saini staged a stunning comeback for RCB and Hyderabad lost eight wickets for just 32 runs, losing the match by 10 runs.
Jonny Bairstow played a knock of 61 runs for Hyderabad while Manish Pandey scored 34 runs.
Earlier, for RCB, Devdutt Padikkal and AB de Villiers scored half-centuries to take the side's total to 163/5 in the allotted twenty overs.
The Virat Kohli-led side will now take on Kings XI Punjab on Thursday, September 24.