"Play as long as possible, the sport needs you": Dwayne Bravo to Virat Kohli
Raipur, May 14
Royal Challengers Bengaluru star batter Virat Kohli's stunning return to form against Kolkata Knight Riders not only won over fans but also drew a heartfelt tribute from Indian Premier League legend Dwayne Bravo.
After two back-to-back ducks, Kohli's 60-ball unbeaten 105 helped defending champions RCB beat KKR by six wickets in their IPL 2026 match on Wednesday at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Stadium in Raipur.
In a video shared by RCB on their Instagram account, the KKR mentor was seen hugging Kohli and telling him, "Play as long as possible, the sport needs you."
Kohli also became the first Indian batter to reach 14,000 runs in T20 cricket. Overall, Kohli is only the sixth batter in the world to achieve the landmark.
The veteran batter slammed a brilliant hundred against KKR and played some unbelievable shots to record his 9th IPL hundred.
Chris Gayle (14,562), Kieron Pollard (14,482), Alex Hales (14,449), David Warner (14,284) and Jos Buttler (14,200) are ahead of Kohli on the all-time T20 run-scoring list.
Kohli also became the fastest player to reach 14,000 T20 runs in terms of innings taken, achieving the milestone in 409 innings and surpassing Chris Gayle's previous record of 423 innings.
With nine IPL centuries and one international T20 hundred, Virat Kohli became the first Indian batter to register 10 centuries in the shortest format of the game.
Gayle leads the list for most centuries in T20 cricket with 22 centuries, followed by Babar Azam with 13. David Warner and Virat Kohli are jointly third with 10 centuries each.
— ANI
Reader Comments
From two ducks to a match-winning century, that's typical Kohli resilience. But honestly, it's a bit frustrating how he goes through these phases in big matches sometimes. Still, respect for the way he bounced back.
What a moment between two legends! Bravo's words hit deep - the sport truly needs players like Kohli who bring passion and intensity every single game. Well played, King 👑
Impressive stats, no doubt. But I feel Kohli's international form in T20Is hasn't been as dominant lately. Hope he translates this IPL form into the World Cup. India needs him at his best, especially on big stages.
Kohli and Raipur seems to bring out the best in him! That six over long-on was pure class. Bravo's gesture shows how much respect he commands from fellow cricketers. Chasing 200+ is never easy, but he made it look effortless today 👏
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