IPL 2023: Virat Kohli goes past Chris Gayle with record seventh IPL hundred

IPL 2023: Virat Kohli went past Chris Gayle's record for most IPL hundreds with his unbeaten 101 runs off 61 balls in Royal Challengers Bangalore's (RCB) must-win match against Gujarat Titans (GT) at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Sunday.

Kohli took a single off on the 60th delivery of his innings to bring up his seventh IPL hundred. Kohli had scored 100 off 63 balls against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in his last outing to equal Chris Gayle's tally of six IPL hundreds.

Rajasthan Royals (RR) wicketkeeper-batter Jos Buttler is third on the list with five hundreds. KL Rahul, Shane Watson and David Warner have four IPL hundreds each to their name.

"We would have taken that with both hands once we were five wickets down. We pretty much pulled things back towards the end. Close to 200 is a winnable score for me. It's upon the bowlers to execute," the 34-year-old said during the mid-innings break.

The former RCB and India captain also slammed his critics for thinking his T20 game is outdated, saying that he is back to his best in the shortest format of the game.

"I felt great. Lot of people think that my T20 cricket is declining, I don't think so. I look to hit gaps and then the big ones towards the end. You have to read situations and rise up to the situations.

"I feel really good with my game at the moment. Spin wasn't easy to get away. There's enough on this pitch for our bowlers. What matters is to stay in the present. I wasn't focusing on the rain, focused on what I need to do for the team," Kohli said as he helped RCB post 197/5 in 20 overs.

Kohli's innings consisted of 13 fours and one six. The star batter played the anchor by helping RCB recover from 133/5 in 14.2 overs and staying unbeaten till the very end. His sixth-wicket partnership with young Anuj Rawat accounted for unbeaten 64 off 34 balls.

Kohli's contribution in the partnership was 40 off 19. A subdued celebration followed once he reached the three-figure mark even as his wife Anushka Sharma blew some flying kisses from the stands. GT captain Hardik Pandya also came and hugged Kohli.

RCB had the bigger goal in mind as a win at Chinnaswamy is a must for RCB to qualify for the IPL 2023 playoffs. In case they lose, Mumbai Indians (MI), who defeated Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) by eight wickets earlier today, will qualify.