Virat Kohli is acting as a temporary captain in the absence of Faf du Plessis, who has some problems with his ribs.
Virat Kohli, the stand-in captain against Punjab Kings, took a fantastic review after the inputs of Dinesh Karthik to send back the dangerous Liam Livingstone. The umpire declined the appeal immediately, but after a brief discussion with the bowler and the wicketkeeper, the decision was sent upstairs.
Chasing a score of 175, Punjab Kings got off to the worst possible start, who are missing the services of Shikhar Dhawan due to a shoulder niggle. They are short on experience, and the RCB bowlers exploited that severely.
Virat Kohli is acting as a temporary captain in the absence of Faf du Plessis, who has some problems with his ribs. Virat has been absolutely spot-on with the review calls against Punjab Kings today. He took two vital reviews against Atharva Taide and Liam Livingstone, and the on-field umpire had to overturn the decision on both occasions. The review call on Livingstone’s dismissal was terrific in several ways.
— A (@cricketvf) April 20, 2023
Mohammed Siraj bowled a length delivery angled on the off-stump line. Liam Livingstone, who was playing his first game of the season, charged down the wicket and heaved across the line. However, he couldn’t make any contact, and the ball hit Livingstone’s pad.
RCB fielders appealed in tandem, but the umpire was not interested in that appeal. Mohammed Siraj was confident, as he always is. However, Virat Kohli didn’t take the review immediately and asked the wicketkeeper, Dinesh Karthik, about it.
Dinesh Karthik provided his inputs, where he probably told Virat that the ball could hit the off-stump. The stand-in captain, Virat Kohli, took the review at the very last moment. The replay showed that the ball was hitting the off-stump.
While Liam Livingstone was perplexed with the replay, RCB fielders were cock-a-hoop. Livingstone was the best PBKS batter of the game, and getting him out cheaply was a massive boost for the Virat Kohli-led RCB. Livingstone is a threatening batter in the T20 format, who can take the game away within a span of a few balls. Virat Kohli has had a great game as a captain, who was leading the side after one and a half years.
