IPL 2020: 'He is an absolute genius,' Chris Morris hails RCB skipper Virat Kohli

Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) all-rounder Chris Morris termed his skipper Virat Kohli as an "absolute genius" after RCB's 37-run win over Chennai Super Kings (CSK) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020 on Saturday.

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After winning the toss at the Dubai International Cricket Stadium, RCB captain Kohli opted to bat. RCB did not have the best starts as their opening batsman Aaron Finch was dismissed in the third over by CSK bowler Deepak Chahar. RCB managed just 36 runs in the powerplay overs, which was their lowest score at the end of the first six overs this season. CSK's Shardul Thakur sent back RCB's in-form opener

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Devdutt Padikkal in the 11th over for 33 from 32 balls, leaving RCB at 66 for 2. In the same over, Thakur removed AB de Villiers for a two-ball duck before Sam Curran dismissed Washington Sunday a little later, making the situation worse for RCB.

In the end, Kohli built an unbeaten 76-run partnership with Shivam Dube and that made the difference in the end. Out of the 76 runs, Dube scored just 22 from 14 balls, while the rest came from the captain's bat. RCB set a target of 170 for CSK.

Morris, who had missed RCB's initial couple of weeks in the IPL 2020 because of an injury, made an instant impact during the RCB vs CSK game on Saturday. The South African picked three wickets and gave away just 19 runs in his quota of four overs.

Speaking at the post-match interview, Morris admitted he was nervous ahead of his return after a long injury break. "I was very nervous, it has been a while since I last played a game, so I was very nervous, I had butterflies in my stomach, it was like I was making my Test debut again. Happy to get on the park, any contribution I can make, it is a good feeling," added Morris, who made his RCB debut on Saturday.

The 33-year-old praised Kohli for leading from the front in RCB's first innings just when the side needed the push in the middle overs. "Virat played brilliantly, the wicket was too paced and sticky, it was a Test match length wicket, you did not need to try too much on this wicket. At the end of the day, the wickets will get slower, hopefully, some of the bowlers will get luckier as compared to the batsmen.

After 16 overs, we just thought something needed to happen, there's a reason why Virat has the most number of runs in the IPL, he is an absolute genius, he did really well against such an experienced bowling lineup, he likes to lead from the front, I like how he goes about his game, he is a leader who likes to win and it helps the rest of the team, I like how he goes about his game," Morris added.

Morris, who has also represented CSK, Delhi Capitals (DC), and Rajasthan Royals (RR) in the IPL, also mentioned that the tournament so far has been interesting for the bowlers as well and not just for the batters, considering the pitches have been changing because of the dew factor.

"Somedays the dew comes in and it is a factor and somedays its drier, we have tried to figure it out as to what will suit our bowling unit. I think slowly but surely the guys are doing their job now. It is a nice bowling unit to be a part of," added Morris.

RCB's next IPL 2020 fixture is against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) on Monday in Sharjah.