Former Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) player Shane Watson recently recalled how he still regrets his final over against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) in the 2016 IPL final. He also talks about how it was Virat Kohli’s best chance of winning the IPL title.
Final losses are tough to overcome and Virat Kohli is an athlete who has faced a lot of heartbreaks over the years both in the IPL as well as on the international stage. One such final was played in Hyderabad in 2016 between SRH and RCB.
Hyderabad won the title clash after Shane Watson, who had a great time with the ball throughout the tournament, conceded 61 runs in his quota of four overs. After this torrid spell, Watson admitted he was shattered to pieces as this might have been the main reason why Royal Challengers Bangalore lost the final in 2016.
“The 2016 final which I played with RCB was something I was just shattered about. Because I know how much it meant to RCB to win that final. It was at home at Chinnaswamy. RCB had played so well all year, at the backend of that tournament in particular,” Watson said on the Delhi Capitals podcast.
“It was Virat Kohli’s best season as a player and as a captain as he scored more than 960 runs in a single IPL season. This is a record that still hasn’t been broken or no one has even come close to this record. Virat in particular was on fire. It was his chance, one of the greatest players, to win that elusive IPL title as captain. And bowling that one over just shattered me. It just got it wrong and I felt like the end of time,” added the former Australian all-rounder.
Shane Watson’s record in IPL
Shane Watson later went on to win the IPL with Chennai Super Kings (CSK) under the leadership of the great MS Dhoni in 2018. He even had the chance to take them home in 2019 against Mumbai Indians but just fell short. The Aussie all-rounder also won the title with Rajasthan Royals (RR) in 2008.
Overall, Watson has featured in 145 matches, scoring 3874 runs at an average of 30.99, including four centuries and 21 half-centuries. He also has 92 wickets under his belt with the best figure of 4/29.
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