He is the leading run-getter of the season. No one has crossed fifty more times in the tournament. He is striking them big in the powerplay. He is slog-sweeping the spinners. Virat Kohli is in top form in the competition and is leading the late charge by the Challengers in the tournament. With the World Cup barely three weeks away, it is worth asking – is this the best of Kohli – the batter – in the IPL? What are the attributes which stand out in this edition? How do the numbers stack up against 2016?
Kohli reached a rare milestone during his scintillating 92 against the Punjab Kings at Dharamsala. He became only the second batter after KL Rahul to aggregate 600+ runs in a season. Barring 2024, Kohli has achieved the feat in 2013, 2016 and 2023. Rahul had crossed the 600-run mark in 2018 and then in three successive editions – 2020, 2021 and 2022. David Warner and Chris Gayle are next on the list making it to the 600-Club on three occasions each.
Run-scoring propensity second only to 2016
Kohli was in devastating form in the T20 World Cup at home in 2016 and carried that form into the IPL. His run-scoring propensity and consistency was in a different league that season as he amassed a record 973 runs with four hundreds and seven fifties. The Kohli of 2024 is second only to the Kohli of 2016 in run-scoring. He has already equalled his aggregate from 2013 and is just five shy of matching the tally from last season. Kohli has registered five fifties and a hundred this season and his six 50+ scores are the most for any batter in the tournament.
A higher strike rate than 2016
Virat Kohli has silenced his critics and buried all the talk around his slow scoring rate with some scintillating performances this season. Post his ‘slowest’ 67-ball ton against the Royals, Kohli has upped the ante and produced four high impact performances with the bat with his 92 off just 47 deliveries against the Punjab Kings being his standout knock this season. Kohli has increased his scoring rate from 141.8 in the first six matches of RCB’s campaign this year to 167.6 in the next six.
Overall, his strike rate of 153.5 this season has pipped the scoring rate from his record-breaking season in 2016 where he scored 152 runs for every hundred deliveries. This is particularly significant given Kohli’s recent struggles with scoring rate in the IPL. Just for perspective, he had a strike rate of 121.3 in 2020, 119.5 in 2021 and 116 in 2022. Kohli pushed it up significantly in 2023 to a respectable 139.8 but has made a big statement by taking it up a few notches higher this season.
A bigger six-hitter in 2024
One of the main reasons for Kohli’s 150+ strike rate this season is his frequency of hitting boundaries. Kohli has smashed a boundary every 4.9 deliveries this season which is his best frequency of doing so ever in the IPL. He took 5.3 deliveries for every boundary in 2016 – his previous-best season on this count.
The biggest difference this season has been in his intent and ability to clear the ropes. Kohli has already hit 30 sixes in the tournament and his balls per six ratio of 13.8 is his best-ever for a season, bettering the 16.8 deliveries he took to hit clear the fence in 2016! Kohli always attached a price on his wicket and hitting the ball in the air was not his style and preferred way of scoring quickly. However, that seems to have changed this season with him deliberately going aerial to maximize the result.