IPL 2026: ‘Kohli has proved old generation is still the best’

India legend Sunil Gavaskar hailed Virat Kohli for producing yet another masterclass under pressure after the former India skipper struck an unbeaten 105 against Kolkata Knight Riders KKR to guide Royal Challengers Bengaluru RCB to a sixwicket victory in their IPL 2026 clash in RaipurKohlirsquos unbeaten 60ball century his ninth hundred in IPL history and 10th overall in T20 cricket powered RCB to a successful chase of 193 with five balls to spare and lifted the side back to the top of the points tableReflecting on Kohlirsquos chasedefining knock Gavaskar said the veteran batter once again showed why he remains among the gamersquos greatest performers despite the growing spotlight on younger stars this seasonldquoVirat Kohli was absolutely outstanding against KKR He knows how to construct a chase better than most When it comes to T20 centuries he is third on the list with 10 behind Chris Gayle and Babar Azam But he is the fastest to 14000 T20 runs and has nine IPL hundreds Records are there to be broken but it will take a very long time for anyone to match what Kohli keeps delivering game after game season after seasonldquoWhile everyone was talking about this being the season of lsquoGen Nextrsquo Kohli showed he is still around He silenced the doubters with a century and moved to third in the Orange Cap race He proved that the old generation is still the best Even though the young stars are taking centre stage the experienced greats are not done yet This hundred from Virat Kohli was one of those special moments that remind us of his greatnessrdquo Gavaskar told JioStarKohlirsquos innings was built with trademark control and precision After Jacob Bethellrsquos early dismissal the former RCB captain steadied the chase and gradually accelerated stitching a crucial 92run stand with Devdutt Padikkal He reached his fifty in 32 deliveries before shifting gears in the latter half of the innings eventually bringing up his century in the 19th over to a thunderous reception from the Raipur crowdGavaskar also pointed to a key turning point in the match Rovman Powellrsquos dropped catch when Kohli was still settling into his innings The missed opportunity proved costly as Kohli made KKR pay with a matchwinning hundredldquoBefore this RCBKKR game KKRrsquos efficiency with catches was still the best in the IPL this season even after dropping a few catches They were at the top of that table But this one hurt badly Rovman Powell who has taken some stunning catches this season was fielding inside the 30yard circle He had the chance to dismiss Virat Kohli early He went up high timed his jump well but the ball slipped outldquoYou cannot drop Kohli early in his innings He will make you pay every single time LSG learned that lesson the hard way Give him an early lifeline and he grabs it with both hands He scored a hundred and made KKR regret that drop That is what great players do They donrsquot give you a second chance They punish your mistakes and turn the game on its headrdquo Gavaskar stated10No of centuries for Kohli in T20s mdash the most by an Indian279No of IPL matches played by Kohli mdashjointmost alongside Rohit SharmaThis story has been sourced from a third party syndicated feed agencies Midday accepts no responsibility or liability for its dependability trustworthiness reliability and data of the text Midday managementmiddaycom reserves the sole right to alter delete or remove without notice the content in its absolute discretion for any reason whatsoever