Virat Kohli on Saturday achieved yet another first in the Indian Premier League even as Royal Challengers Bengaluru faced defending champions Chennai Super Kings in a must-win game in the IPL 2024 at M Chinnaswamy Stadium. (Follow Live | Full Coverage)
Despite the rain threat, the match started at the scheduled time with the visiting captain Ruturaj Gaikwaid opting to bowl first. And Kohli, opening the batting alongside RCB captain Faf du Plessis, got off to a flier, 19 off nine, thanks to a couple of sixes and one four.
In the process, Kohli became the first-ever player to score 3000 or more runs at a single venue in the Indian Premier League.
Former Mumbai Indians captain Rohit Sharma has scored 2295 runs at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai while Kohli's former RCB teammate and good friend Faf du Plessis completes the top three. The former South Africa captain had scored 1960 runs at Chinnaswamy.
The former RCB captain has reached the Chinnaswamy milestone in 89 IPL games (86 innings). The 35-year-old is the all-time leading scorer in the IPL. The right-handed batter from Delhi has accumulated more than 7900 runs so far. He is also the highest scorer in IPL 2024.
The RCB vs CSK match was stopped after three overs due to a steady downpour. The hosts were 31/0 in three overs.
With three teams -- Kolkata Knight Riders, Rajasthan Royals and Sunrisers Hyderabad -- already confirmed for play-offs, Royal Challengers Bengaluru are Chennai Super Kings in a virtual knock-out fight.
And RCB, batting first, need to win the match by 18 runs or more to overtake the defending champions in the IPL points table.
CSK, with 14 points from 13 matches, and RCB, with 12 points from their 13, entered the match as fourth and seventh-ranked teams, respectively. A washout will give CSK the passage to the playoffs.
