Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Virat Kohli is looking forward to the upcoming second phase of IPL 2021 which he feels is very important going into the T20 World Cup. 

Kohli and fast bowler Mohammed Shami have arrived in Dubai on Sunday (September 12) ahead of the tournament. They had to leave Manchester early after the COVID-19 outbreak in the Indian camp led to the cancellation of the fifth Test.

"Unfortunate how we ended up being here early but with COVID in place, things are very uncertain, so anything can happen at any time," said Kohli in a video posted on RCB Twitter.

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"Hopefully, we are able to maintain a good strong, secure environment here and have a quality IPL and onto the World Cup. So now, heading into the T20 phase, I think it is going to be an exciting phase and a very important one for us at RCB and for the Indian team at the World Cup as well," he added.

RCB have named Sri Lanka's Wanindu Hasaranga as a replacement for Australia's leg-spinner Adam Zampa. They have also added Dushmantha Chameera for Daniel Sams, George Garton for Kane Richardson, and Tim David for New Zealand's Finn Allen.

Kohli backs the skills of the new additions to RCB and said he's eager to see them with the whole squad. The RCB skipper is currently undergoing a six-day mandatory quarantine before entering the team bubble in Dubai.

"The replacement players have great skillsets, especially in these conditions. Excited to see them with the whole group and to resume a very good season that we started last time around," he said.

RCB speedster Siraj is confident of their chances for the top four as they are in a good position after the first half of the tournament. He said, "I'm joining RCB family after so many days, really excited for the IPL. We are in a good position on the points table so it will be a lot of fun."

(With ANI Inputs)