Virat Kohli is undoubtedly one of the modern-day greats and the India skipper’s stats are a testimony of his batting prowess. They speak how the stylist top-order batsman has evolved over the years.

Irrespective of the formats, Kohli has excelled in every challenge he has been put into and so is the case with him in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

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The flamboyant batsman is at the top when it comes to runs in IPL. In 177 matches, Kohli has scored 5,412 runs with an average of 37.84 at a strike rate of 131.61.

Kohli’s IPL stats, especially his average, may not do justice with the aura he has maintained in the white-ball formats, but it is worth mentioning that his overall records contain two phases of his career – the first contains the initial eight editions of the league where the batsman has underperformed according to his stature while in the second part of the essay Kohli has just been Kohli.

In the inaugural edition of the IPL in 2008, the star batsman was roped in by Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and was handed the reins in the year 2013. In the 12 editions of the tournament, 2016 was such a year when the highest-paid IPL cricketer lived up to the expectations by amassing 973 runs across 16 innings.

The 9th edition not only helped Kohli better his records but also provided him the much-needed impetus, turning the 31-year-old’s IPL career on its head.

Let’s have a look at the difference between the stats of the RCB skipper before and since 2016.

Runs:

Kohli has scored 42% of his total IPL runs in just four editions of the tournament (2016 to 2019), however, for the initial 58% runs he took eight seasons.

From the inaugural edition of IPL to 2015, Kohli scored 3,137 runs at an average of around 392 runs per season. However, in the second phase of the essay, he piled up 2,275 runs in the following four seasons with an average of over 568 runs per season.

Average:

Kohli’s average of more than 50 across all the three formats in international cricket speak better about his consistency.

In the initial eight IPL seasons, the right-handed batter scored at an average of 32.30, however, in the following four seasons, he boasted a steep rise by scoring at an average of 48.3.

Strike rate:

Kohli is one of the players who are known for their ability to steal runs between the wickets. The classy player never believes in striking the ball hard and rather relies on timing. He is ranked 53rd in terms of best batting stike rate in the league.

The right-handed batsman has a strike rate of 131.61. In the first phase, Kohli scored at 123.32, however, since 2016, he has scored at a strike rate of 138.70.

Centuries:

To score a century in IPL is always a special feeling and to date only 15 Indians have achieved the feat, Kohli is one of them.

Before the 9th edition of IPL, Kohli had no centuries to his name but the year 2016 saw him score as many as four hundreds and he became the only player to do so in a single edition of the tournament history. And a century in 2019 only did the icing on the cake by taking his total tally of hundreds to five. Only West Indies’ Chris Gayle has scored more centuries (6) than Kohli.

Kohli has scored his fastest IPL century in just 47 balls and is ranked at the 13th position in the list of the fastest centurions of the tournament.

Half-centuries:

Kohli has scored a total of 35 half-centuries across all the 12 editions of the league. Only Australia’s David Warner (44), India’s Suresh Raina (38) and Shikhar Dhawan (37) are above Kohli.

In the first essay, the classy right-hander scored 19 half-centuries, however, in the second one, he scored 17. It is worth noting that the batman has reached the 50-run mark 22 times since 2016 but on five of the occasions, he capitalised his scores and reached three figures.

Boundaries:

Kohli has scored a total of 191 sixes in the league and is ranked 6th on the list. Around 42% of the sixes, that is 80, has been hit by Kohli only in the 4 editions – 2016 and onwards, whereas he had taken the remaining eight editions to hit the initial 111.

In terms of fours, Kohli has slidden the ball 480 times to the boundary ropes. Out of which 204 have come in the second essay.

Not outs:

Kohli has batted in 169 innings in the overall history of IPL and has remained unbeaten 26 times. While 19 of that came in the first essay, 7 came in the second.

Many players have remained not out more times than Kohli and the chart is led by one the best finishers in the world MS Dhoni (65).

Under Kohli’s captaincy in 2016, RCB narrowly missed the title as they lost to Sunrisers Hyderabad in the final by 8 runs. Despite Kohli enjoying a sensational season, including a 35-ball 54 in the final, RCB’s quest for the trophy remained as it is.

However, Kohli and his men must be aiming to win their maiden title this year given the IPL happens.