Veteran India and Royal Challengers Bengaluru batter Virat Kohli has said that Smriti Mandhana is a very gifted and a natural timer of the ball, sharing that he was also proud of how Jemimah Rodrigues played a match-winning innings in the World Cup semifinal against Australia last year as well.

“There is no doubt that Smriti has always had this very unique talent. She is a very gifted and natural timer of the ball, which is amazing to watch. It was amazing to watch her perform like that in the final,” Kohli said.

“I was proud of Jemmy because of what she had gone through in the tournament. It felt like a meant-to-be moment for her. She looked completely zoned out, in her own world, just watching the ball,” Kohli said. “It did not feel like she was bothered about the record chase, the world champions or the strongest team out there. It showed amazing mental strength and resilience.”

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However, Virat Kohli remains his team’s leading run-scorer in the ongoing season of the Indian Premier League, having scored 484 runs at a brilliant average of 53.77 and a strike rate of 167.75.

“I’m in a phase of my life and career where I’m just doing things which are purposeful. Even playing cricket, you get to a stage which goes beyond numbers and achievements. It’s not fulfilling you in a way that is organic, which is in flow with the love of the game. Now I’m at a stage where I feel like the purpose is the impact you can leave on people,” Kohli said.

“The talent is through the roof. The youngsters are growing up on powerful, explosive cricket and their ability to clear the boundary and hit aggressive shots is phenomenal. But the game is still played between 22 yards. You need technique, you need balance, you need some kind of symmetry to play this game,” he concluded.