After a long break of 28 years, India won the ICC ODI World Cup on April 2, 2011, 10 years ago. India successfully chased the goal of 275 runs against Sri Lanka, with captain MS Dhoni playing a game-winning shot. Dhoni scored and went 91 unbeaten to take home the coveted trophy. There is one thing that remains synonymous with this 2011 final for Indian fans and that is Dhoni’s iconic six-match win. The six is a part of Indian Folklore.
Virat Kohli almost coincidentally repeated a similar high on the twelfth anniversary of that historic victory. But this time for Indian Premier League’s Royal Challengers Bangalore. Kohli’s team faced Mumbai Indians in their first game of the 2023 IPL. Despite initially taking charge and scoring an impressive 73 balls from 43, RCB captain Faf du Plessis was eventually sacked. Kohli then finished the job, going undefeated in 82 of 49 deliveries. Throughout the race, the Royal Challengers remained in control. It was Kohli who clinched the sixth victory. That closely resembles the six Dhoni scored on Nuwan Kulasekara’s delivery to win the 2011 World Cup Final.
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Peaked after the game, Kohli said RCB must remain focused on its title fight. “Phenomenal win. Homecoming after so many years. Thanks to his batsmen for achieving this result. Tilak Varma batted well. We keep going backward. Faf du Plessis went first and I joined later. I’m very happy with how things went today,” said Kohli after the game. βApart from Mumbai having won five times and Chennai four times. We have placed in the rankings several times. So we play cricket consistently. It’s just about staying focused and trying to be the most balanced team. We have to use this dynamic. We just have to do better. βThe new ball was a bit tricky. But we changed the swing by making them fall with the new ball. We reversed all of their intensity. The wicket was pretty good. We’re hitting good areas. We’re still putting pressure on the bowlers.” Kohli added.
