Irfan Pathan appeared to be let down by Virat Kohli’s handling of the off-pace short deliveries bowled to him during the IPL 2025 Finals between Punjab Kings and Royal Challengers Bengaluru at Ahmedabad. Kohli was bowled for 43 off 35 on the fifth delivery of the 15th over of the first innings.
Irfan Pathan emphasised PBKS’ tactics when bowling to the RCB’s best batsman.
The cricketer-turned-commentator seems dissatisfied with Kohli’s strike rate on a somewhat batting-friendly surface at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. Azmatullah Omarzai removed the ace batsman in Afghanistan’s third over of the night.
“They kept bowling short and slow balls to Virat Kohli. Strike rate of 123 after 35 balls on this pitch is disappointing,” Irfan wrote on his X (formerly known as Twitter) handle.
They kept bowling short and slow balls to Virat Kohli. Strike rate of 123 after 35 balls on this pitch is disappointing.
— Irfan Pathan (@IrfanPathan) June 3, 2025
Kohli never looked like his typical free-flowing self during his 35-ball innings. His innings consisted of only three fours. Kohli became RCB’s fourth wicket to fall, following Phil Salt (16 off nine), Mayank Agarwal (24 off 18), and Rajat Patidar (26 off 16).
This is not the first time the short-ball tactic has been employed against Kohli. One such example is the way the Australians bowled at him in the second semi-final of the 2015 Cricket World Cup. Kohli departed for a 13-ball one after being repeatedly hit by short balls during that game in Sydney over a decade ago.
Regarding the game, RCB finished their innings on 190/9. Interestingly, Kohli’s score of 43 (35) was the highest for the Patidar-led team. Jitesh Sharma (24 off 10) and Romario Shepherd (17 off 9) provided useful cameos near the conclusion of the innings.
PBKS’s Arshdeep Singh (3/40 in four overs) and Kyle Jamieson (3/48 in four overs) shared six wickets between them. Vijaykumar Vyshak (1/30 in four overs) was PBKS’s most impressive bowler, but Azmatullah Omarzai also impressed with his spell in the middle overs, which resulted in Kohli’s breakthrough.
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