Got to get on that winning run again: Virat Kohli

The scene at Sharjah Cricket Stadium was "calm before the storm," as a sandstorm delayed the start of the much-anticipated clash. Chennai Super Kings won the toss and elected to bowl first. The Royal Challengers Bangalore made two changes to their eleven. Kyle Jamieson and Sachin Baby made their ways for debutante Tim David and pacer Navdeep Saini. Captain Virat Kohli and Devdutt Padikkal began the proceedings for the Bengaluru-based club.

The openers gave RCB a flying start to the innings, scoring 55 runs in the powerplay. The mentor-mentee duo of Virat and Dev extended their stand for the opening wicket to 111 runs. Right when it seemed like everything was going as per our script, the pitch started to slow down and CSK bowlers took maximum advantage of it. And restriction they did, forcing RCB to finish their quota of 20 overs for 156/6 on a pitch which looked like somewhere around 170-190 would be an ideal score after that impressive flow of runs in the first half of the innings.

In reply, Faf du Plessis and Ruturaj Gaikwad began the run chase for CSK. The opposition openers used the powerplay to their benefit, amassing 59 runs in the first six overs. The RCB bowlers did manage to slow down the CSK batting in the middle overs, but it wasn't enough. In the end, CSK won by 6 wickets and 11 balls to spare. This win takes them to top of the table with 14 points, which more or less assures them of a play-off spot.

Speaking at the post-match presentation, captain Kohli expressed his disappointment and said that they were short of 15-20 runs despite the fact that the wicket slowed down.

"The wicket did slow down a bit. But I feel we left out 15-20 runs out there. 175 would've been a winning total. Didn't bowl consistently. Didn't show that much courage I guess with the ball. They bowled well in the back end of the innings, executed the slower balls and yorkers nicely," Virat Kohli said during the post-match presentation.

The 32-year-old stated that they "have to show more courage in crunch moments" and also, asserts that they have to get back on that winning form again.

"We spoke of areas we didn't want them to hit and we didn't do that. That little bit of X factor was missing in the first 5-6 overs. Got to get on that winning run again. This one is a bit more disappointing. The first one we just weren't in the game. Have to show more courage in crunch moments. This tournament goes by quickly," he concluded.

Up next, the Royal Challengers Bangalore take on the defending champions Mumbai Indians on Sunday, 26 September at the Dubai International Stadium.