Bengaluru, March 29. Virat Kohli, returning to T20 cricket, scored 69 runs in 38 balls and led defending champions Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) to victory in the very first match against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH). After the win, he said that the time spent away from this format helped him stay fresh and excited and come back with 120 percent. Kohli’s last T20 match was the IPL 2025 final, which RCB won to clinch its first IPL title. They started their title defense by chasing the target of 202 runs in 15.4 overs. Kohli remained unbeaten in this chase.

He said, “Look, the kind of schedule that has been in the last 15 years and the amount of cricket I have played, there was always a high risk of fatigue for me. So these breaks have been very helpful for me. I remain fresh and excited. Whenever I come back to play, I come back with 120 per cent. I do not come back unprepared. “In fact, the extra rest refreshes me mentally as well. When you are physically fit and mentally motivated, you are able to contribute to the team. That’s what you want as a player. You don’t play just to keep your place. You want to keep performing well and working hard for the team.”

Before coming to the IPL, Kohli had scored 93, 23 and 124 runs in three ODIs against New Zealand in January. He was India’s highest run-scorer in that series. Before that, in the ODI series against South Africa in December, he had also scored 302 runs, which included two centuries. Kohli hit five fours and five sixes against SRH. He finished the match by hitting 6, 4, 4, 4 against Harshal Patel in the 16th over.

He said that despite not playing T20s since June last year, the recent ODI performances helped him “carry on the same momentum”. Speaking about his innings against SRH, he said, “I didn’t try to play shots that I don’t normally play. I knew my rhythm was right and I’ve worked hard on my fitness, so things will fall into place. Tonight was a great opportunity to start strong and build on that.” RCB’s next match will be played against Chennai Super Kings on 5 April.