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As Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) returns to M Chinnaswamy Stadium for their fourth Indian Premier League (IPL) home clash against a struggling Rajasthan Royals (RR) on Thursday, a key concern for them will be the dry run their star batter Virat Kohli has had so far in front of the home crowd.
RCB, currently at third spot in the points tally with five wins and three losses, is in a contrasting run of form home and away. Unstoppable away from home with five successive wins, they have struggled to adapt to their own home conditions at Bengaluru, losing three successive games. In all three games, their batters failed to give bowlers a total to defend. A reason behind this poor home run is Virat failing to get runs. In his three home innings so far, Virat has managed scores of seven (against Gujarat Titans), 22 (against Delhi Capitals) and one (against Punjab Kings), that translates to 30 runs in three innings at an average of 10.00. On the other hand, Virat has looked like a million bucks while batting away from home, especially during run chases. In away matches, Virat has accumulated 292 runs in five matches, at an average of 146.00, with four half-centuries in five innings. His best score is 73*. Virat is currently ranked at number eighth in the race for the Orange Cap, with 322 runs in eight matches at an average of 64.40, with four half-centuries and a strike rate of 140.00. His best score is 73*. In his last 10 innings at home, Virat has scored 370 runs at an average of 41.11, with two half-centuries and the best score of 83*. In comparison to that, his last 10 away innings have witnessed him score 556 runs at a stunning average of 92.66, with seven half-centuries to his name. Will Virat's bat give the highly supportive, loud and massive 'Sea of Red' a reason to rejoice? Only time will tell. (ANI)
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