IPL 2021: Great Start To The Campaign Our Driving And Motivating Factor Says Virat Kohli

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Virat Kohli said on Saturday that a great first half of IPL 2021 will be a driving and motivating factor ahead of the second half of the tournament. He also said that the team will take confidence from playing a certain brand of cricket in the first half in India.

"It is an important factor. But I don't think that is going to take anything away from what we have set out to achieve and what we have already set in motion the last time we started IPL 2021. We have had a great start to the campaign and that is certainly our driving and motivating factor knowing that we can play a certain brand of cricket which we have shown in the first leg," said Kohli during a virtual unveiling of the team's blue jersey.

"With really strong and consistent performances, every player chipping in somewhere or the other, the strength of the team is coming together nicely. At crunch moments, we were standing up and making impact performances when needed for the team. All those factors are huge," added Kohli.

The 32-year-old expressed his happiness over joining the team for practice sessions from Friday after completing the mandatory quarantine of six days.

"After quarantine when I stepped out yesterday to practice for the first time, I did not feel that we went away at all. It felt this is just an extension of where we left. The spirit and camaraderie was absolutely the same and excitement could be felt in the air. With players understanding what they work hard for, as mentioned before in the start of IPL 2021 first leg and seeing results of it, it gives you more motivation to go out there and play similar kind of cricket and excel when the team wants you to.

"So, I was very very excited and happy to see such a nice and relaxed environment with a lot of competition and very high density practice that we had. Everyone was giving everything they had. So, I was very pleased to see that and very happy to be finally out of quarantine and get into grove of IPL all over again," concluded Kohli.

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RCB, the three-time runners-up of the IPL, are currently placed third in the points table with 10 points, winning five and losing two of their seven matches from the first half of IPL 2021. RCB are scheduled to take on the Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in Abu Dhabi on Monday