Virat Kohli vs Ravichandran Ashwin in IPL: Decoding the stats
Royal Challengers Bangalore will return to the M Chinnaswamy Stadium to host Rajasthan Royals in Match 32 of the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023 on Sunday (April 23). Both teams have played six games this season, with RR winning four and RCB clinching three. Virat Kohli's battle with Ravichandran Ashwin will be to watch out for in the contest. Here are their stats.
Kohli's numbers against Ashwin
Though Kohli has fallen prey to Ashwin only once in 19 IPL meetings, he has shown respect to the off-spinner. The right-handed batter has accumulated 160 runs off 125 balls against the RR star, striking at 128. Ashwin has been hit for 13 boundaries and six maximums in this battle. Notably, Kohli's strike rate against Ashwin rises to 165.95 at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Kohli's struggle versus spin
With 279 runs in six games, Kohli is the third-leading run-getter in the ongoing season (SR: 142.35). However, he has largely struggled against spin bowlers, especially outside the powerplay overs. Four of his five dismissals this season have been recorded against spin. Moreover, his strike rate comes down to 103.48 against spin bowlers. He has been striking at 172.72 against pacers in IPL 2023.
Kohli's paltry number versus off-spinners
Kohli has not really enjoyed tackling off-spinners in IPL and his paltry strike rate of 114.44 against them is a testimony of the same. Offies have dismissed him 14 times in 83 IPL meetings. Meanwhile, Ashwin's economy rate of 7.38 against right-handed batters is significantly higher than his IPL career economy rate (6.96). He has dismissed these batters 106 times in 184 innings.
How Kohli has fared versus RR
Kohli has blown hot and cold versus the Royals in the past, accumulating 600 runs in 27 games at 27.27. His strike rate in this regard reads 115.38. The highest run-getter in IPL history, Kohli has raced to 6,903 runs in 229 games at 36.71. He has amassed five tons and 48 fifties. 129.63 reads his IPL career strike rate.
Ashwin's numbers against RCB
Meanwhile, Ashwin's numbers against RCB are not great either (21 wickets in 25 games). However, his economy rate reads 6.9. With 165 wickets in 190 games, the veteran off-spinner is the fifth-highest wicket-taker in IPL history. In the ongoing season, he owns eight wickets in six matches at a brilliant economy rate of 6.75. He has also made handy contributions with the bat.
