"There are many guys who have leapfrogged him"- Dale Steyn claims Virat Kohli needs to score big in IPL 2024 for India's T20 World Cup hopes

Former South African legendary pacer Dale Steyn believes it is absolutely vital for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) star batter Virat Kohli to have a stellar IPL 2024 season with the bat.

Kohli has played just two T20I games since the previous edition of the T20 World Cup and Steyn believes the Men in Blue have found several exciting batters to choose from for the showpiece event in June this year.

Speaking to the reporters in a press conference arranged by Star Sports, here's what Dale Steyn had to say about Virat Kohli:

"It's very important for him to score runs because that will put him in a good frame going into the (T20) World Cup. There are many guys who have leapfrogged him recently because he has taken a bit of a break and there are many contenders to take to that World Cup."

Kohli had withdrawn from the Test series between India and England, citing personal reasons. His last appearance in competitive cricket was in the third T20I of India's series against Afghanistan in Bengaluru in January.

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Dale Steyn believes India need Virat Kohli's experience in T20 World Cup

While Dale Steyn claimed that Virat Kohli needed a prolific IPL 2024 under his belt, he also opined that the experience of big matches and big runs that the Indian batter had was invaluable.

On this, Steyn stated:

"I look at runs the same way you look at someone's bank balance. Virat has got stacks and stacks of runs that he has stored up over many years. They are going to look at guys who have been there and done that and that's something Virat has done."

The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) are set to start the IPL 2024 campaign with a tough game against the Chennai Super Kings (CSK) away at the Chepauk on March 22.