Manjrekar observed that Kohli adapted his game following scrutiny over his previously lower strike rates.
Former Indian cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar has credited external criticism for driving Virat Kohli to increase his strike rate to over 140 in the IPL 2026 season.
Manjrekar observed that Kohli adapted his game following scrutiny over his previously lower strike rates hindering Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB).
Kohli shifted from a more cautious approach to an attacking mindset in IPL 2023, batting freely with Faf du Plessis and Glenn Maxwell. In 2024, he defied critics by maintaining a strike rate of 154.7 en route to securing his second Orange Cap, demonstrating an ability to dominate from the outset.
The veteran batter carried this momentum forward, sustaining a strong strike rate of 144.71 during RCB’s maiden title winning campaign in 2025. Kohli’s strike rate in the ongoing IPL is 162.50 after eight innings, with 351 runs to his credit.
“This is, again, going to rile up Virat Kohli fans. We have seen Virat Kohli bat differently, bat superbly this season, a strike rate of 140-150. This is the same Virat Kohli; there is nothing that has changed," Manjrekar said while speaking to Sportstar.
“It is only that he has decided that he is going to bat quicker. And why has he decided that? Because he could see the pressure building and people talking about him batting a little too slowly," he added.
Manjrekar noted that Kohli did not trust the lower-order batters previously, leading to a sheet-anchor role where he hit a boundary and followed up with singles to ensure he stayed in.
According to him, Kohli’s decision to stop treating himself as "indispensable" to the RCB batting lineup has allowed other players to thrive.
“This 150 strike rate was 125-130, three to four years back. It was only because Virat Kohli would hit a boundary and then pick up a one or a two. After all, he wanted to extend his innings and play longer, because he felt he had to be the man to bat most of the innings and didn’t trust the batters down the order," Manjrekar stated.
“RCB changed when Virat Kohli was at the top, started batting quicker and didn’t make himself indispensable. That is when the others also blossomed," he further remarked.