Virat Kohli slams IPL fifty against 13th different team: Stats

Royal Challengers Bangalore amassed 212/2 against Lucknow Super Giants in the 15th match of the 2023 Indian Premier League (IPL) season at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium, Bengaluru. Virat Kohli starred with a 44-ball 61, scoring his 46th IPL half-century. He was at his absolute best in the Powerplay. Kohli now has an IPL fifty against 13 different teams. Here are the key stats.

Kohli came out all guns blazing, attacking the bowlers right from the start. He completed his half-century off 35 balls in the ninth over. It was Kohli's 46th IPL fifty and a second in three matches. Kohli, who eyed his sixth IPL ton, was dismissed by veteran Mishra in the 12th over. The former smashed 61 off 44 balls (4 fours, 4 sixes).

Kohli now has 50+ scores against most teams in the IPL (13). He has at least one such score against 13 of 15 teams to have featured in the tournament. The former RCB skipper has left behind David Warner, Gautam Gambhir, and Shikhar Dhawan on the list. The aforementioned players have achieved this feat against 12 different teams.

Kohli now has 24 fifty-plus scores in T20s in Bengaluru (M Chinnaswamy Stadium), the joint-most by a player at a venue. He has joined England's Alex Hales, who owns as many scores at Trent Bridge. Jason Roy and Tamim Iqbal follow suit (21 each).

Kohli punished the bowlers in the first six overs. He slammed 42 of his 61 in this phase. As per Abhishek Mukherjee, these are the most runs scored by Kohli in the Powerplay in T20 cricket. His previous highest scores read 39 vs WI (2017), 38 vs SL (2012), 37 vs England (2012/13), 36 vs Delhi Daredevils (2018), and 36 vs Rajasthan Royals (2018).

Kohli has raced to 2,489 runs at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium in the IPL. Notably, he is the only batter with over 2,000 runs here in the tournament. AB de Villiers follow Kohli on the list with 1,960 runs.

Kohli is the highest run-getter in IPL, amassing 6,788 runs in 226 games at an average of 36.69 (50s: 46, 100s: 5). He struck a match-winning 82* in RCB's opener vs Mumbai Indians (MI). The right-handed batter could only manage an 18-ball 21 in his subsequent outing against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR). RCB lost that contest by 81 runs.