Riyan Parag has always let known that he idolizes Virat Kohli. It must have felt good to bag a Player of the Match award against Royal Challengers Bangalore, on Tuesday evening in Pune as Virat Kohli, who is struggling for form and timing, watched from the field the youngster score 56 runs off 31 balls.
Parag’s knock, which included 3 fours and 4 sixes after his side had lost early wickets, helped Rajasthan Royals put up a par total of 144, which RCB fell 29 runs short of. RCB’s talisman batter Virat Kohli, promoted to open the innings, continued his poor form as he managed just 9 runs in a really scratchy 10-ball stay, following on from his two golden ducks.
With another low score that sees Kohli’s season average dip to 16 (his worst since 2008), fans and experts pounced on him, expressing their concern while some suggested Virat Kohli to take a break.
Riyan Parag, though, feels that nobody but Kohli will decide his future. ESPNcricinfo asked their fans about what advice would they give to Virat Kohli and India skipper, to which Parag responded: “None of us should, let the (GOAT emoji) do his thing.”
Here, check out Riyan Parag’s tweet for Virat Kohli:
None of us should, let the
do his thing
— Riyan Paragg (@ParagRiyan) April 26, 2022
do his thing
Riyan Parag had a memorable night: after taking RR to a fighting total, he gobbled up four catches in his famous nonchalant way. Parag had received a lot of flak before this knock, as he’d managed only 48 runs in the previous 7 matches.
“A bit of satisfaction. The Royals have shown faith in me for the last three years, and I am paying them back bit by bit. I love pressure and I am just showcasing my abilities. During the time-out, Sanga came out and we agreed that 140 was a good total on this wicket. We decided to go big in the last two overs. I wanted to target Hasaranga in his second over, but we lost wickets, and so I had to strategize and go after Hazlewood and Harshal,” Parag explained his plans in the post-match presentation.
