When Virat Kohli leaves the dressing room to bat for the Royal Challengers Bangalore against Punjab Kings at the Brabourne Stadium tomorrow, it could well be that his primary aim would be to get off the mark after Sunday’s third IPL-15 golden duck.

IPL doesn’t fall into the international cricket category (yes, it’s a BCCI domestic tournament), but the stakes are high; franchise-pressure never to be underestimated. And ducks can throw the embarrassment factor into the potpourri of emotions. “You lose your mental equilibrium and start worrying about things instead of focussing on what you should be focussing on,” Greg Chappell told me in December 2003 when I asked him what happens to a batsman when he is in a rut. Chappell would know, considering his Australian season of 1981-82 saw him walk back to the pavilion with a duck against his name seven times against the likes of Pakistan and West Indies.