RCB’s post-match presentation after their one-run defeat to KKR at the Eden Gardens was fraught with confusion.

Chasing 223 for what would have been the second-highest successful run-chase in IPL history, RCB got off to a flying start courtesy of Virat Kohli, before a controversial no-ball call led to his dismissal. Will Jacks and Rajat Patidar then kept them in the game, before an unexpected Karn Sharma final-over flourish brought them within touching distance of victory, only to fall one run short.

Following the end of the match, Kohli was seen discussing his dismissal in detail with the match officials as well as with other RCB and KKR players.

The (almost) unattended press conference

As is the norm after every IPL game, both teams send one member of the squad for the post-match conference. After the KKR-RCB game, the home team sent fast bowler Harshit Rana, who bowled a crucial spell of 2-33.

His presser lasted nearly six minutes, after which the reporters waited for RCB’s representative. Usually, there’s not much of a gap between the two press conferences, although it does take a while for the first one to take place after all the broadcasting formalities are completed.

However, the wait for the RCB presser ended up being an unprecedentedly long one as confusion and frustration grew among the reporters covering the game. After waiting for what was at least half an hour, if not more, without any news on why RCB weren’t sending anyone for the press conference, most of the journalists started leaving.

Eventually, Reece Topley, who didn’t play the game, attended the presser, much to the surprise of the handful of reporters who were still around.

An accidental PC

On being asked the reason for the delay, Topley gave an honest, but strange answer. The left-arm seamer said that the main team bus had left the stadium and he happened to be one of the few remaining. “Yeah, I’ve ended up doing the press conference,” Topley said. “I think the main bus had gone and I was in the gym, staying behind. So, I’ll happily front up.”

Virat Kohli was furious after being dismissed on a controversial waist-height no-ball call which went against him.

Out or not out. What is your decision?🤔

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— Wisden India (@WisdenIndia) April 21, 2024

He ended up answering questions for the next five minutes, most of which were spent discussing Kohli’s dismissal, which Topley argued fell in a “grey area”: “I think everyone’s kind of perplexed, ’cause it’s obviously, those measurements were brought in to get rid of the grey area and then you had something today that probably no one thought of, which was obviously he was out of his crease and the ball was obviously over his hip-high (height).

“But then, obviously he was out of his crease, down the wicket and the measurement was taken from Virat inside the crease. So it’s a bit of a grey area.”

RCB have now lost seven of their eight games this season. On being asked about what would be the motivation for the rest of the games now that they are more or less out of the play-offs race, Topley said, “We’ll go about every game like we’re gonna try and win it, like we’re going to get the most of our squad.”

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