Another cricketer praised Virat Kohli After his crucial innings in the opening game of Indian Premier League against Sunrisers Hyderabad. This time he is a former South African cricketer. dale steyn Who has praised Kohli’s six-hitting ability in the later stages of his career.
Virat Kohli, who was earlier known for taking singles and playing grounded, classy shots, has now transformed into a batsman who can hit the boundary consistently. Over the past two seasons, he has developed into a powerful six-hitting player. In the opening match, he hit as many sixes as he did fours, indicating a marked change in his approach. It is an impressive development that Kohli has displayed over the last few years.
Dale Steyn breaks down Virat Kohli’s new six-hitting method
Dale Steyn believes that this change in Virat Kohli’s batting is not accidental but the result of conscious effort and adaptation to modern T20 demands. He pointed out that Kohli has worked on the range of his shots, especially targeting short boundaries and using his strong base to generate power.
Steyn also highlighted that Kohli’s superior strike rate and intent make him even more dangerous in the shortest format. Earlier, Virat Kohli used to open the innings, but now he is able to pace at will and put pressure on the bowlers.
“A lot of players, when they get to the level that Virat Kohli is at now, want to change a few percentage points in their game. That’s what Virat has been doing every IPL season. He keeps looking for ways to improve himself and the latest improvement he has made to his game is his six-hitting ability, which has increased over the last two seasons,” Steyn was quoted as saying on Geostar.
A complete T20 batsman: Change in Virat Kohli’s mindset
Steyn further said that this version of Kohli is a complete T20 batsman, someone who can rotate the strike when needed and change gears on the fly to dominate the opposition. With this new approach, Kohli has not only silenced the critics but has also set a benchmark for consistency with aggression in modern cricket.
He said, “As a batsman, it is about recognizing the ball you want to hit for a six. In the past, Virat had a set mindset of playing a particular shot. But now, after retiring from Test cricket, his mindset has changed a lot. Virat is so good and supports himself so much that he is able to hit aerial shots again and again. It shows the class of the person.”
What does this mean for IPL 2026
With this new aggressive intent, Virat Kohli Can emerge as one of the most dangerous batsmen ipl 2026. If he continues in this form, he can not only open the innings but can also dominate the bowling attack. Royal Challengers Bangalore A serious title contender this season.
Cricviz statistics underline Kohli’s increasing aggressive intent, especially during the powerplay overs. In 2020, his offensive shot percentage in the first six overs was 31.5 percent. This figure gradually increased to 37.8 percent in 2021 and then significantly to 45.5 percent in 2022.
The upward trend continued in 2023, with their offensive intent reaching 54.6 percent. By 2024, this increased to 60.6 percent and in 2025, Kohli’s aggressive shot percentage in the powerplay climbed to an impressive 66.3 percent.
However, it will be really interesting to see how the bowlers come up with new plans to stop the run-machine from taking their team to another Indian Premier League final.
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