Virat Kohli once again showed why he remains one of the best in the IPL as he played an unbeaten 69 to help RCB comfortably chase down 202. After a long break from T20 cricket, he looked in top form and played a key role in the team’s strong start to the 2026 season.Former South African pacer Dale Steyn praised Kohli’s growth as a batsman, particularly his improved six-hit ability in recent seasons. “A lot of players, when they get to the level that Virat Kohli is at, they try to change their game by a few percent. That’s what Virat does every IPL season. He looks for ways to improve and the new improvement he has made in his game is his six-hitting ability, which has increased over the last two seasons,” Steyn said on JioStar.
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Greenstone Lobo predicts IPL 2026 winnerSteyn also explained how Kohli’s mindset has changed over time, adding: “In the past, Virat had a set mindset to play a particular shot. But now his mentality has changed a lot after he retired from Test cricket. Virat is so good and supports himself so much that he is able to do aerial shots again and again. It just shows the class of the man.”The stats also show that Kohli has become more attacking in the power bowl over the years. His intent kept increasing, making him more dangerous at the top.Devdutt Padikkal highlighted how Kohli’s presence helped him play freely during the chase. “When I came to bat, Virat bhai’s only instruction was to maintain the run rate and put pressure on the bowlers. My job was to take risks while he anchored the chase. His presence took the pressure off me and let me play freely,” Padikkal said after the match.“The credit for developing and improving my game goes to our head coach Andy Flower and our batting coach Dinesh Karthik, bhai. They really worked hard on me.”
