'If you can give it, you got to take it, otherwise don't give it' - Virat Kohli after dramatic LSG vs RCB encounter in Lucknow

The Match 43 in IPL 2023 on Monday, May 01 between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Lucknow Super Giants made headlines for all the wrong reasons as RCB batter Virat Kohli and LSG mentor Gautam Gambhir got into a verbal spat while sharing pleasantries after the match. Following the incident, both Kohli and Gambhir have been fined 100% of their match fees.

The duo was found breaching article 2.21 of IPL's code of conduct, which includes all type of conduct that brings the game into disrepute, including unruly public behaviour. Notably, Kohli had looked pumped up during the second innings of the match as RCB successfully defended their score of 126/9 and registered a win by 18 runs.

The star batter celebrated aggressively after taking a catch in the field to dismiss Krunal Pandya as he was seen silencing the crowd in celebration. It is being assumed as a response to Gambhir silencing the Bengaluru crowd after LSG’s win over RCB in their earlier clash of the competition. He even had an altercation with LSG seamer Naveen-ul-Haq during the 17^th over of the chase when spinner Amit Mishra and one of the umpires had to intervene to calm him down.

Kohli and Naveen got into another verbal spat even while shaking hands after the game. Irked by Kohli’s behaviour on the field, Gambhir pulled aside their opening batter Kyle Mayers while he was having a chat with Kohli.

The incident seemed to further add fuel to the fire as both Kohli and Gambhir were seen approaching each other aggressively. The duo even had a chat where Kohli could be seen pacifying Gambhir putting a hand on his shoulder. However, things showed no signs of cooling down with temperatures soaring between the duo once again and LSG captain KL Rahul and Mishra had to intervene to separate them.

Notably, the duo also had a heated exchange during RCB vs KKR match in IPL 2013 as they were seen having a go at each other following Kohli’s dismissal during the game.

Meanwhile, in a video shared by RCB’s social media handles which has dressing room reactions of the players after their victory, Kohli could be heard saying, "That's a sweet win boys! sweet win, Let's go!," he screamed in ecstasy after the win. "It was a really important win on the road. It's a very sweet win for many reasons, most importantly for the kind of character we showed defending that total.

"I think everyone had the belief that we can do it and we ended up on the winning side which is really great," commented Virat Kohli. 

He stated, "The win was great and the fact that we got more support than the home crowd is an unbelievable feeling, it tells you all about how much we are liked as a team and how people come out and back us."

Royal Challengers Bangalore@RCBTweets

LSG v RCB, Game Day Dressing Room Reactions King Kohli reacts to the win, Faf explains the crucial partnership and how Virat’s aggression helps the team, Karn and Hazlewood talk about their performances, before the team sang the victory song. Watch Game Day for more… #PlayBold

09:03 AM · May 02, 2023

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That's the best version of Virat: Faf du Plessis

The RCB captain Faf du Plessis was pleased to see Kohli pumped up during the game. "That's the best version of Virat, isn't it?. To see him pumped up like that. That's when he's at his best. It's really awesome to be a part of it. My job is to keep things calm on the field, which I thought we did really well,” said Du Plessis.

Mike Hesson, director of operations at RCB, admitted that the loss in the previous fixture against LSG had fired up players. "I guess after the last match at the Chinnaswamy, where we lost off the last ball, it always felt like we were really desperate to get this one. So I think you probably saw a little bit of that boil over tonight,” said Hesson.