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Virat Kohli extinguishes pitch intruder's hopes, runs away in the nick of time despite being physically worn out
This was the second time in this season that a spectator had breached the security to meet Virat Kohli.
Virat Kohli added another feather to his cap on Sunday with his milestone knock as Royal Challengers Bengaluru continued their streak of winning away from home. RCB beat Rajasthan Royals by nine wickets at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur, where Kohli scored an unbeaten 62 off 45, his third half-century knock in the ongoing IPL 2025.
After the match, as Kohli was in conversation with Rajasthan Royals player Yashasvi Jaiswal, team batting coach Vikram Rathour and RCB bowler Bhuvneshwar Kumar, he suddenly spotted a spectator had invaded the pitch in Jaipur and was looking to meet him. But in a move similar to MS Dhoni, he sneaked away behind the players, leaving the fan clueless about his whereabouts, before the security officials at the venue grabbed him and took him off the field.
Notably, Dhoni did something similar back in 2019, during an ODI match in Nagpur against Australia. He forced the pitch invader, who only wanted to shake hands with the former India captain, to chase him for a few yards before he stopped and let him touch his feet.
This was the second time in this season that a spectator had breached the security to meet Kohli. The previous happened in the tournament opener last month at the Eden Gardens during RCBV's match against defending champions Kolkata Knight Riders.
Record knock for Kohli
The half-century score against Rajasthan was Kohli's 100th fifth in T20 cricket, making him the first Asian batter to reach the milestone. He now sits second on the all-time list of most T20 fifties, only behind Australia's David Warner, with 108 such scores in 400 games. It was Kohli's 66th in the T20 tournament that put him at level with Warner.
Despite Kohli staying unbeaten, Phil Salt played a more defining role for RCB in the chase, with his 33-ball 65 before fellow opener Kohli took charge to anchor the chase.
It was RCB's fourth win in six matches, sending them into the top four of the 10-team table. On the other hand, inaugural champions Rajasthan slumped to their fourth defeat in six outings.
