Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s Virat Kohli had a reaction that spread quickly online. Will Jacks hit Rashid Khan’s deliveries all over the field during their IPL 2024 clash against Gujarat Titans. Smiling in disbelief, the 35-year-old watched as the English batter attacked the Afghan spinner relentlessly at Narendra Modi Stadium.
The event occurred in the 16th over of the innings, as Shubman Gill rolled his final die as the Titans attempted to halt the juggernaut. However, it backfired when Virat Kohli handed the strike to his partner with the first ball of the over. Wills then smashed four sixes and a couple of boundaries, taking the leg-spinner for 29 runs in one over. The last six also saw Jacks score his first IPL century in only 40 deliveries, with Rashid’s statistics reading an eye-watering 4-0-51-0.
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Will Jacks, who had missed the last edition altogether, joined Virat Kohli in the fourth over, when Faf du Plessis holed out to deep midwicket following his short pyrotechnics. The duo initially struggled to get the ball away at will, but regained their footing around the midway point. The Royal Challengers chased down the goal in only 16 overs, with the two combining for an unbroken 156.
“Virat kept his intensity up” – Will Jacks
The Surrey all-rounder, who was named Player of the Match, said Virat Kohli’s focus enabled him to take his time finding rhythm, despite his early attempts to overhit the ball.
The 25-year-old remarked during the post-match presentation:
“Amazing feeling right now. Faf and Virat got us off to a very good start. I struggled early on, but Virat kept his intensity up and gave me the chance to find my rhythm. Once we had the time-out, we said, “let’s get two really good overs here and we win the game.” Once that happened, I just kept going and amazing feeling right now. I was trying to be positive (against spin early on), was just struggling. I was trying to overhit the ball, probably little bit tensed. Once I got one away off Mohit, I relaxed, got into my innings and then just trusted myself.”
Will Jacks
As a result, RCB has now won consecutive matches. However, they remain at the bottom of the rankings, with only three victories from ten matches.
