IPL 2023: Ravi Shastri shares words of wisdom for Virat Kohli over his strike rate concerns

Ravi Shastri advised Virat Kohli to not slow down once he gets his eye in during the ongoing IPL 2023 edition. Kohli has been one of Royal Challengers Bangalore's (RCB) top performers with the bat, scoring419 runs in 10 games (fifth-most overall), but his strike rate has not impressed many. He has struck at135.16, but in his side's encounter versus the Delhi Capitals (DC), he slowed down considerably as his inning progressed and returned with a 46-ball 55 striking at 119.57. While he has hit six half-centuries this season, he has often been criticised for slowing down in the middle overs.

Addressing Kohli's strike rate concerns in IPL 2023, former India head coach Ravi Shastri told ESPNCricinfo, "Once you get in the tempo, don't worry about the others. That will be my message to Virat. In a T20 game, you don't need that many batsmen. If you are hot keep that going. If you get going, don't change your tempo; try and up the ante."

Shastri cited DC opener Philip Salt's example and said, "Prime example was Phil Salt. Once he got into the groove, he didn't let go. That is something that could be looked at from Virat's point of view."

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In the RCB-DC clashat the Arun Jaitley Stadium, New Delhi on Saturday (May 06), Faf du Plessis & Co. opted to bat first and posted 181-5 riding on Mahipal Lomror's 29-ball 54* and Kohli's 55. In reply, David Warner-led DC chased down the score in 16.4 overs with six wickets in hand. Salt led the charge with a solid 45-ball 87 along with cameos from Mitchell Marsh, Warner and Rilee Rossouw.

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On the entire match, Shastri opined, "Delhi's combination was good. I guess the extra batter (Rilee Roussow ) coming in made a big difference. It allowed the batsman to go hammer and tong; they lost an early wicket. They also bowled well on that surface to restrict RCB. I think they were 20 short."

"Players like Dhoni, Kohli, they know that there's a camera on them all the time. And you deserve it for what you have done and achieved in the game. So you can get a lot of brownie points by just being smart on camera," Shastri added.

Kohli-starrer RCB occupy the fifth spot in the points table with ten points from as many games. They next face Mumbai Indians (MI), at the Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, on Tuesday evening (May 09).