Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) teammate Dale Steyn has showered his praise on star batter Virat Kohli for his unbeaten century in a winning cause against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) in IPL 2026. After coming from two consecutive ducks in his previous two games, the cricketer-turned-commentator credited Kohli for his strong mindset, especially in run chases. However, Steyn added that he wasn’t surprised because the top three batters are the ones who end up scoring the centuries in T20s.

The remarks came days after Kohli slammed an unbeaten 105 off 60 balls to take RCB over the line against KKR while chasing 193. During his knock, he became the first player to complete 500 runs nine times in the T20 league.

Speaking to AB de Villiers on his YouTube channel, Dale Steyn said:

“I might sound controversial, I know it’s probably the easiest time to get a 100 has been opening the batting, one, two, and three. You still got to go out there, and you got to do it. You still got to score those runs, which takes something. And then also to chase like I’m building this stuff. So that pressure of being able to chase, maintain the scoring rate, maintain the run rate required, shepherding guys around you. It’s a masterful knock [from Kohli], something he’s done time and time and time again. And I think now he relishes that space.

“It’s a knife-edge; it can go either way. People expect you to do well in chases because you’ve done that in the past. That can create a kind of pressure, but I think if you take all of that away, like take everything away, I think just the way that Virat has evolved his game over the years, his hunger, his ability to still find ways to score in different areas. That’s the big thing for me. Any time you get a 100 in T20 is very special.”

Dale Steyn has played for RCB in five IPL seasons, picking up 32 wickets in 33 matches.

“Like Novak Djokovic” – AB de Villiers heaps praise on Virat Kohli’s century vs KKR in IPL 2026

RCB legend AB de Villiers also lauded Virat Kohli for his century against KKR, commending him for his ability to deliver over the years by mastering the craft. While comparing him with tennis legend Novak Djokovic, the cricketer-turned-analyst said in the same video:

“It’s a psychological thing, I think. And I can think of a lot of sports people like Novak Djokovic, who’s labelled as this guy that can do marathons basically in tennis matches, take it very deep, and once again, the flip side is also true. He can sometimes be a little bit lazy and not go for the killer punch because you are this guy who takes it deep.

“So, it can go both ways, but it’s definitely in the mind where Virat crossed that line initially, early on in his career, started building, getting a bit of momentum with that. Once you start crossing the line a couple of times, you actually start believing like I’m really a specialist at chasing, and then you become almost unstoppable.”

Meanwhile, defending champions RCB have become the first team to qualify for the IPL 2026 playoffs. The table toppers have nine wins in 13 games. Virat Kohli and his team will play their last group-stage match against SunRisers Hyderabad (SRH) away from home on May 22.