Feels great after qualifying : Virat

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Virat Kohli said after the win against Punjab Kings in the IPL match that it feels great to qualify. There are only a few seasons we haven’t qualified for since 2011, but the team is in a great position at present. Winning eight out of 12 matches is a great campaign for the team.

After the match, Virat said, “Now we have two more chances to make it to the top two and that inspires us to play even more fearlessly.” The first hurdle for any team is qualifying. There are still many areas that we need to improve, so that we can work on those areas and reach the top two. It was not an easy wicket. When you haven’t lost a wicket on the scoreboard, you can take more risks, which is what Devdutt Padikal and I have done. 15-20 runs can be important at this ground, we will have to play here in the coming days. There is a qualifier and an eliminator to be played here. As a team, we have tried to improve in winning as well as losing. We knew the wicket would get slower and slower and it would not be easy to shoot here. Rahul and Mayank batted really well but we knew we were just two wickets away from getting back in the game. Our bowlers made a great comeback and did a great job.

The RCB captain said that ever since Siraj became successful in Test cricket, his expressions have changed. That’s what I keep telling people. You can bowl in any format. Harshal’s inclusion has been fantastic. Yuzvendra Chahal has bowled well and Shahbaz has been brilliant too. Garten made an impact as soon as it arrived. The way the team is playing and the players are performing, the IPL campaign has been good. If the players didn’t move the campaign could end very quickly. This year the players have taken the responsibility.