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Royal Challengers Bengaluru stalwart Virat Kohli extended his supremacy in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 by adding another feather to his cap during the tournament opener of the 18th edition of the cash-rich league on Saturday.
The jam-packed crowd at the iconic Eden Gardens and the defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders were left starstruck by the special show from the 'Chase Master.' While making short work of KKR's 175-run target, Virat took a single on the penultimate delivery of the 10th over to complete 1000 runs against the Knights. After becoming just the third player to achieve the feat, Virat now boasts 1000-plus runs against four different franchises, the most by any player in the tournament's history. Virat now exhibits 1000-plus runs against Chennai Super Kings, Delhi Capitals, Punjab Kings and KKR. Rohit Sharma and David Warner are the closest to Virat for the record. Rohit and Warner have completed 1000-plus runs against two franchises each. The former Australian southpaw exhibits 1000-plus runs against KKR and PBKS. At the same time, Rohit has done it against KKR and DC. During the tournament opener between RCB and KKR, Virat became just the third Indian to hit 400 T20 matches mark. Rohit (448) and Dinesh Karthik (412) stand ahead of Virat in the list for most appearances by an Indian player in T20s. In his landmark game, Virat came out to open alongside Phil Salt to set the tone for a successful chase for RCB. While Salt took the brunt of piling up runs on the board on his shoulder, Virat silently shouldered the responsibility with his limited onslaught. He pulled out a wide array of shots from his arsenal to add to KKR's increasing woes. He stayed till the end, unbeaten on 59, to ensure RCB began the campaign with a statement 7-wicket win on the opposition territory. (ANI)
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