Former India all-rounder Sanjay Bangar has said that the RCB gave the initial opportunity to Virat Kohli as a domestic player. However, he also added that Kohli’s achievements made sure that the decision to stay with the franchise was his.
Kohli has played for RCB in all 19 seasons of the Indian Premier League (IPL). He is the leading run-getter in the cash-rich league’s history, amassing 9,336 runs at an average of 40.41 in 275 innings as well.

On ‘The Great Indian Cricket Show’ on DD Sports, Bangar said, “It doesn’t happen by design because when he got an opportunity at the start, he was picked as a domestic player. Then he played for India. At that time, Chris Gayle and AB de Villiers played for RCB, and they bore the team’s responsibility, and he kept getting better.”

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“After that, when it came to retention, the management also showed faith in him, and he had so many achievements that the decision was always his. He never wants to leave this team because Bengaluru is a beautiful city. Secondly, whether you are winning or losing, it doesn’t make a difference to the fans. They have consistently backed the team,” he further added.

In the same interaction, Sanjay Bangar also shared about the RCB fans’ love for Virat Kohli and the franchise.

“RCB has become a huge brand, the way it has been marketed as well. RCB’s social media team has done an excellent job with the kind of content they post about the behind-the-scenes happenings or the auction planning. They want to see good cricket and close matches. The good thing was that after 2020, we got a consistent team in our time. We consistently started qualifying for the playoffs. One thing that was consistent was Virat Kohli’s runs. Whether it was the first or the 19th season, he used to contribute always. There was a lean season in between compared to his standards, but there was consistency overall,” Sanjay Bangar concluded.