Virat Kohli smashed 67 off 42 deliveries at Wankhede Stadium against Mumbai Indians on Monday. The RCB opener looked in great touch as he powered his team to a strong start despite losing Phil Salt in the first over. Kohli raced to his half-century in just 27 balls, which is his fastest IPL fifty since 2018, and looked in control throughout his innings. Kohli made his intent clear early in the powerplay, scoring 36 runs inside the first six overs. He even took on Jasprit Bumrah early in the innings. It was Bumrah’s return to competitive cricket after 92 days, but Kohli showed no hesitation in putting him under pressure. Also Read: Virat Kohli Smashes Bumrah for Six on His IPL 2025 Return The former RCB captain brought up his half-century in style, with a slog sweep off Mumbai Indians’ spinner Vignesh Puthur. Speaking during the mid-innings interview, Kohli explained how staying ahead in T20 cricket requires constant evolution. "My strength is to get my touch and feel of the ball early on, then I can play the shots that I want to. I tried to innovate a bit, tried to hit different shots off spin as well and then tried to hit different areas of the ground. You need to keep evolving your game and keep up with the demands of the situation in T20 cricket. When I time the ball nicely early on, I have better chances to contribute in the way that I want," Kohli said. Kohli becomes the 1st Indian to cross 13000 T20 runs On Monday, Virat Kohli also became the first Indian man to score over 13,000 runs in T20 cricket. He is only the fifth player overall to reach the milestone and did it in just 386 innings, making him the second fastest to do so behind Chris Gayle. Gayle achieved the feat in 381 innings in 2019. Others in the elite list include Alex Hales, Shoaib Malik, and Kieron Pollard. Kohli’s achievement is even more remarkable because, apart from playing for India and India A (Indians), all his T20 appearances have come for either Delhi in domestic cricket or Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the IPL. Gayle leads the all-time T20 run charts with 14562 runs, followed by Hales (13610), Malik (13557), and Pollard (13537). Kohli now holds the fifth spot in the list.