IPL 2024: Virat Kohli hits 52nd IPL fifty vs Kolkata, takes lead in Orange Cap race

Superstar batter Virat Kohli smashed his 52nd half-century in the Indian Premier League to get Bengaluru off to a great start against Kolkata at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.

Kohli got his landmark off 36 deliveries in the heavyweight IPL clash. With this knock, Kohli went past Hyderabad’s hard-hitting wicket-keeper Heinrich Klaasen to become the leading run-scorer in IPL 2024. The 35-year-old won the Orange Cap in 2016 and will be aiming to repeat the feat this season, with the 2024 T20 World Cup on the horizon.

Kohli got off to a brilliant start, smashing Kolkata’s star bowler and most-expensive signing in IPL history, Mitchell Starc, for a boundary off the very first ball. He took on Starc in the third over again, smashing him for a six and a four off consecutive deliveries. Following the early dismissal of Faf du Plessis, Kohli formed a 55-run stand with Australia all-rounder Cameron Green to set the tone for his side.

Kohli also went past the legendary AB de Villiers to become the batter with the most sixes for Bengaluru (239). He went past the South African’s record by smashing Kolkata’s Sunil Narine for a massive six in the eighth over. He got past the 50-run mark in the 12th over, taking a quick single off Varun Chakaravathy.

Kohli has begun IPL 2024 in brilliant form, having smashed successive fifties in the competition. He scored a 49-ball 77 against Punjab to guide Bengaluru to a 4-wicket win in their second match of the season. He also became the first player to hit 150 runs in IPL 2024.

Kolkata will be looking to continue their winning start in the 2024 season of the Indian Premier League, having defeated Hyderabad in their opening match at the iconic Eden Gardens. Meanwhile, Benaguluru, who are fresh off their 4-wicket win over Punjab, will be aiming to keep their winning momentum going.

STARTING XIs

Kolkata: Phil Salt (WK), Venkatesh Iyer, Shreyas Iyer (C), Rinku Singh, Sunil Narine, Andre Russell, Ramandeep Singh, Mitchell Starc, Anukul Roy, Harshit Rana, Varun Chakaravarthy.

Bengaluru: Faf du Plessis(C), Virat Kohli, Rajat Patidar, Glenn Maxwell, Cameron Green, Dinesh Karthik, Anuj Rawat(WK), Alzarri Joseph, Mayank Dagar, Mohammed Siraj, Yash Dayal.