IPL 2019, Match 35, KKR v RCB: A de-construction of Virat Kohli's masterful century

In the first over of the game, RCB skipper Virat Kohli edged the first ball he faced, only to turn back and see it fall just short of Nitish Rana at slip. A quick smirk and a couple of words to himself followed as he flicked the ball towards mid-wicket to get off the mark next ball.

Sunil Narine was introduced into the attack in the very next over and it almost proved to be a masterstroke. Rapped on the pads by a ball that had enough reps to take it away from leg stump, Kohli survived a DRS call against him and could afford yet another smile.

It took Kohli four more balls to score his first boundary, a fierce pull through mid-wicket off Narine to break the shackles. Six more runs came from that over as the RCB skipper was on 13 from 12 balls.

Uncharacteristic Kohli

Quite opposite to Kohli's character, the RCB skipper was having a tough time out in the middle. An edge off Prasidh Krishna's bowling flew through the empty slip cordon and it was only until Kuldeep Yadav was brought in that Kohli really found his bearings.

A lofted straight drive raced to the boundary like a 'tracer bullet' before the chinaman was deposited into the deep cover hoardings by a typical wristy Virat Kohli-esque cover drive.

While Kuldeep Yadav was being peppered for a couple of boundaries and sixes, Andre Russell was making the most of the flat track on offer, mixing pace and bounce as he troubled the RCB skipper.

In the fourth ball of the eleventh over, Kohli anticipated the 'chin music' from Russell and as the ball climbed on to the RCB skipper, Kohli swiveled and deposited the ball deep into the stands.

A stare and a couple of words followed as Russell could only applaud the fortitude of the shot. Yet, for Kohli, it was all about gearing up for the final flourish.

Slow fifty, by Kohli standards

Well settled right from the start on a belter of a pitch, Kohli got to his fifty in 40 balls as he punched a Prasidh Krishna delivery to mid-off, raised his bat and soaked in the atmosphere as the Eden Gardens reverberated with a 'Kohli, Kohli' chant.

With five overs left to play, Kohli was bound to stay while Moeen Ali was given the license to kill. The English all-rounder stuck to his role with aplomb as he took one of the world's best wrist-spinners in Kuldeep Yadav to the cleaners - 4, 6, 4, 6, wd and 6- 27 runs from the over until he finally holed out to long on.

RCB's aggressor up until that point was back in the hut and now, it was time for Kohli to switch gears post the time-out.

A story of Ice and Fire in the last four overs

Harry Gurney was thrown the ball in the 16th over and was greeted with a short-arm jab-pull as the ball raced across the turf and into the fine leg fence. Two balls later, the ball took a 180-degree direction as the ball whizzed past cover point and into the fence.

A lofted straight drive on the penultimate ball and RCB had 19 runs from that over. Dinesh Karthik turned to Sunil Narine, who was carted for a six by the RCB skipper but only gave away 10 runs.

With two overs to go, Kohli stood on 80 and was already sniffing his 5th IPL hundred just around the corner. Prasidh Krishna, who had been taken for 33 runs from his first three overs was to bowl the 19th over.

A brace was only a positive beginning as the second ball was lifted over long-on for a handsome six. The next ball was fed into Kohli's strong zone as the RCB skipper freed his arms and drove the ball into the vacant cover region, drawing 'Oohs and Aahs' from the crowd.

Five runs away from a landmark ton for Kohli

With five runs to get from six balls, Kohli drove a low full toss towards cover and had to settle for just a single. Stoinis was on strike and although he managed to smash 10 runs off the next two balls, the real picture was on Kohli's hundred.

The fourth ball raced across the turf as long-off's stumble meant that the batsmen could scamper for a brace. However, Kohli was happy with just a single as Stoinis jogged back with a laugh.

Gurney ran in for the penultimate ball, Kohli shuffled across the stumps and whipped it towards square leg. Kuldeep Yadav, stationed between fine leg and square leg ran across to cut it, only to see the ball go through his fingers and into the boundary.

The moment had finally arrived and Kohli was already mid-air. Leaping in the air with his helmet in one hand, all the emotions up until this moment steaming out at this precious moment.

While it was a personal landmark for the champion batsman, it was of much more importance to a faltering RCB side, devoid of motivation all through the season. Yet, in the form of a Kohli masterclass, the Royal Challengers had 213/4 on the board and more importantly, some much needed momentum.

The Knight Riders did manage to make a contest out of it with Nitish Rana and Andre Russell taking it all the way till the last over, but in the end, Virat Kohli's wave of authority in the game stole all the headlines.