IPL 2026: Kohli vs Root debate by Michael Vaughan ends up in social media war

Published - 25 Apr 2026, 23:54 IST | Updated - 25 Apr 2026, 23:56 IST

Michael Vaughan is not a man unfamiliar with stirring up discourse on social media. The former England captain found himself a topic of discussion once again after claiming Joe Root is a much more elegant batter to watch than Virat Kohli.

Replying to a post on X (formerly Twitter) by Sam Billings during the Royal Challengers Bengaluru’s clash against the Gujarat Titans, where he asked in awe whether there was a better batter to watch than Virat Kohli when in full flow. Vaughan quoted Billings' post with a cheeky mention of Root’s name, followed by a winked-face emoji. Fans flooded the post with vocal criticism of Vaughan's statement.

Agreed! Watching Joe Root watch Virat Kohli in full flow 👍

Kohli was at his masterful best, scoring a brilliant 81 off 44 balls as RCB chased down 206 against GT despite Sai Sudharsan’s masterful century for the visitors. The seasoned campaigner was dropped by Washington Sundar off Mohammed Siraj’s bowling off the first ball of his innings and made sure to make the Titans pay for their slip-up. He put on a magnificent 115-run stand with Devdutt Padikkal (55 off 27).

Kohli’s innings set the platform for the chase, which ensured the defending champions got home comfortably despite losing wickets late on. He was also given the Player of the Match award for his sublime knock.

Kohli has been in blistering form in this season, looking fresher and trying to take on bowlers from the get-go. He has scored 328 runs at a strike rate of 163.18. He has struck at 169.4 in the powerplay this season, his highest in his IPL career.

With the victory, the Royal Challengers capped off their Bengaluru leg of IPL 2026 with a stunning win. They won four out of five games in Bengaluru and will now play their final two home games of the league stage at the Shaheed Veer Narayan Singh International Cricket Stadium in Raipur.

On the other hand, Root is making his first appearance in the 2026 County Championship for Yorkshire against Sussex at Headingley. He picked up the wicket of centurion John Simpson as Sussex notched up a mammoth 502 in their first innings.