Tag: VIrat Kohli

  • Shahid Afridi comments on Virat Kohli’s decision of resigning as Test captain

    Shahid Afridi comments on Virat Kohli’s decision of resigning as Test captain

    A day after India’s 2-1 Test series defeat against South Africa, Virat Kohli took to social media platforms and announced his resignation as Test captain. Many believe that Kohli still could have continued at the position for few more years. However, former Pakistan captain Shahid Afridi does not agree. According to him, Kohli made the right decision as an individual is not able to cope up with much pressure after a certain stage.

    Read More – Anushka’s love message for Virat after Test captaincy resignation, Bollywood stars react

    Afridi believes Kohli has made a good decision to step down from the captaincy as it provides an opportunity for him to focus on his batting. Kohli had been struggling to perform up to his usual standards over the past couple of years.

    “It’s fine in my opinion. Virat has played enough cricket and led the team well. And I believe this is the correct decision. There comes a stage where you can’t handle pressure, and because of it, your own performances get affected. So, I think he has captained for a long time and at a great level. As a batsman, it’s time he enjoys his cricket,” Afridi said on Samaa Tv.

    The incredible batter has been unable to score an international century since 2019.

    The 33-year-old cricketer will be seen in action against South Africa in the upcoming ODI series. The batter was rumored to miss the ODI series but he later confirmed his availability for the series.

  • Anushka Sharma praises Virat Kohli

    Anushka Sharma praises Virat Kohli

    Bollywood Actor Anushka Sharma has penned an emotional note on Twitter for her star-crickter husband Virat Kohli after his impressive stint in the PakVsIndia T20 worldcup.

    An explosive half-century by Virat and a century stand with Hardik Pandya helped India defeat Pakistan by four wickets in their Group 2, Super 12 match of the ongoing ICC T20 World Cup at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG).

    Earlier this year, she wrote another message for Kohli, when he resigned from the Test captaincy after a series defeat in South Africa.

    Taking to Instagram, Anushka shared two beautiful pictures of Virat and herself. “I remember the day in 2014 when you told me that you have been made the captain as MS had decided to retire from test cricket. I remember MS, you & I having a chat later that day & him joking about how quickly your beard will start turning grey. We all had a good laugh about it. Since that day, I’ve seen more than just your beard turning grey. I’ve seen growth. Immense growth. Around you & within you. And yes, I am very proud of your growth as the captain of the Indian National Cricket team & what achievements the team had under your leadership. But I’m more proud of the growth you achieved within you,” she wrote about Virat’s growth after becoming the captain of Indian cricket team.

    Sharma’s note turned heartwarming as she hinted that all wasn’t right in Kohli’s decision to step down after India’s recent Test series loss against South Africa.

    “In 2014 we were so young & naive. Thinking that just good intentions, positive drive & motives can take you ahead in life. They definitely do but, not without challenges. A lot of these challenges that you faced were not always on the field. But then, this is life right? It tests you in places where you least expect it to but where you need it the most,” Sharma wrote.

    The “Pari” actor added that she was proud of Kohli for not allowing this to come in the way of his “good intentions”, stating that he led by example and gave it his all, for the love for the game “to the extent that after some losses I’ve sat next to you with tears in your eyes, while you wondered if there’s still something more you could have done.”

    Sharma continued that this was an ethic that Kohli expected from everyone involved as well. “You’ve been unconventional & straightforward. Pretence is your foe & this is what makes you great in my eyes & the eyes of your admirers. Because underneath all this were your pure, unadulterated intentions always. And not everyone will be able to truly understand that,” she wrote.

    Admitting that Kohli wasn’t without flaws himself, one of which has been a quick tempered demeanor that has been often written about in the media, she added: “What you did was to always stand up for doing the right thing, the harder thing, always! You held on to nothing with greed, not even this position & I know that. Because when one holds on to something so tightly they limit themselves & you, my love, are limitless. Our daughter will see the learning of these 7 years in the father that you are to her.”

    Sharma’s emotional statement comes at a time when many are questioning whether all was well between Kohli and the administration that led to his sudden decision to step down.

    Several cricketing greats, from Ravi Shastri to Sachin Tendulkar, have lauded Kohli as one of India’s best skippers, with a track record to prove, and many Bollywood stars have also come out in support for the former captain.

    While many celebs showered their love on Anushka’s post.

    Actor Vivek Anand Oberoi also lauded Kohli for his leadership. “It’s been a phenomenal journey to being the world’s #1 test team & making winning series overseas a wonderful habit, but as they say, all good things come to an end. Here’s to you Captain King Kohli, take a bow & now unleash your bat without the extra weight & flyy,” posted Oberoi.

    Arjun Rampal also chimed in to write: “Why yaar [friend]? @imVkohli you are an amazing captain and have served our nation so well. You have many many more years of cricket in you and a captains mind. I do hope this decision is short lived. Yet, one respects your decision. Thank you for all the incredible memories. #ViratKohli.”

    Earlier, Kohli posted a statement on social media announcing that he was stepping down as Test captain.

  • Furious Kohli, unhappy Indian team hitting out at review system, broadcasters in South Africa Test

    Furious Kohli, unhappy Indian team hitting out at review system, broadcasters in South Africa Test

    A number of Indian players, Captain Virat Kohli among them, made public their displeasure and anger about the South Africa broadcaster, SuperSport, with respect to the use of technology after Dean Elgar was given not out on review on the third day of the final Test in Cape Town.

    It was in the 21st over of the final innings of the match, with South Africa on 60 for one chasing 212 to win the series, when R Ashwin hit Elgar on the pads. South Africa’s captain was given out lbw by Marais Erasmus, the on-field umpire, but the decision was overturned on review with ball-tracking showing the ball going over the stumps.

    The ball-tracking technology is authorised by HawkEye, an independent body, which relays the data to the host broadcaster, in this case SuperSport.

    A visibly irritated Kohli walked up to the stumps, and spoke into the mic, saying: “Focus on your team while they shine the ball. Not just the opposition. Trying to catch people all the time.”

    Kohli wasn’t alone. Vice-captain KL Rahul was heard saying: “It’s the whole country against 11 guys.” While Ashwin seemed to be taunting the broadcasters directly, saying: “You should find better ways to win, SuperSport.”

    The Indian players were not the only ones who didn’t agree with the decision. Erasmus could be seen shaking his head as the pictures played out on the screen at the venue, and was heard saying, “That’s impossible”.

    After the day’s play, when Lungi Ngidi was asked if he trusted DRS to do its job as expected, he said, simply, “Yes”. When asked why, he elaborated: “We’ve seen it on numerous occasions being used all around the world. It’s the system in place. That’s what we use as cricketers.”

    But the Indians were not on the same page.

    Paras Mhambrey, the bowling coach of India, said in his press conference: “We saw it, you saw it. I’ll leave that for the match referee to have a look at it. There’s nothing I can comment on it now. We’ve seen it all, just want to move on with the game now.”

    Elgar was eventually dismissed on the stroke of stumps, and DRS was in the picture again. This time, it was after India reviewed a not-out decision from the other umpire, Adrian Holstock, for a catch to the wicketkeeper off Jasprit Bumrah. It was a full delivery going down leg, and Elgar looked to flick but only managed to nick it, and Rishabh Pant took a diving catch to his right.

    India reviewed, and Kohli was heard saying, “Wonder how they’re going to show that.” As it transpired, UltraEdge showed a spike as ball passed bat and Elgar was given out.

  • Virushka celebrate first birthday of daughter Vamika, host party in ‘bubble’

    Virushka celebrate first birthday of daughter Vamika, host party in ‘bubble’

    India’s most celebrated couple, Test team captain Virat Kohli and Bollywood actor Anushka Sharma have hosted the first birthday party of their daughter Vamika in South Africa in a bio-secure bubble.

    Taking to Instagram stories, sharing a picture with Virat from Vamika’s birthday celebration, Anushka wrote: “The sun was bright, the light beautiful, the table full, and just like that our little girl turned one.”

    Talking about the party and thanking those who made the day special, she added: “The evening was made extra special with the warmest people. And here I was worried about her first birthday being in a bubble! Thank you guys (you know who you are).”

    Anushka also shared a picture of herself, holding Vamika in her arms and captioned it, “My baby girl.”

    Virat and Anushka welcomed their bundle of joy on January 11 last year. The two have been fiercely protective of her privacy and have given strict instructions to the paparazzi from clicking or sharing her pictures.

    Read more – Anushka Sharma slams photographer for invading her privacy

    The family is in a bio bubble since Virat is playing for Team India in the ongoing Test series against the host nation, but Anushka confirmed that Vamika’s birthday was perfect in every manner.

  • Kohli ranks below Babar across all three cricket formats in ICC rankings

    Kohli ranks below Babar across all three cricket formats in ICC rankings

    Indian Test captain Virat Kohli has dropped below Pakistan Cricket Team Skipper Babar Azam in the International Cricket Council’s (ICC) batting rankings across all three formats of cricket Test, ODI, and T20I.

    Kohli was already below Babar in the ODI and T20I rankings, but after the latest rankings were released, the Indian batter slipped two positions and is now at the ninth spot, with 747 rating points.

    The ex-Indian ODI and T20I captain managed to score 53 runs in the Centurion Test against South Africa — averaging only 26.50.

    Kohli was two places above Babar, who gained a spot, and is now at the eighth spot, with 750 rating points in the Test category.

    The Indian batter, in the ODI rankings, is at second place, a spot below Babar, who is at the top of the list. The Pakistan batter has 873 rating points, while Kohli has 844.

    In the T20I rankings, Babar is sitting at the top spot, with 805 rating points, equalling Dawid Malan, while Kohli is not even in the top 10. The Indian batter is at the 11th spot, with 657 rating points.

  • ‘Can’t explain that moment’: Babar opens up about T20 win against India

    ‘Can’t explain that moment’: Babar opens up about T20 win against India

    Pakistan’s all-format cricket team captain Babar Azam has opened up about how he felt beating arch-rival India in the T20 World Cup 2021.

    Azam hailed his side’s record win against India in the event. Pakistan successfully played to a 10-wicket win, ending their World Cup drought against the Men in Blue.

    Pakistan pacer Shaheen Afridi was the star of the show, taking three for 31 from his four overs. Despite a 57 from former Indian T20 captain Virat Kohli, the Indians were not able to notch up an intimidating total on the scoreboard.

    Chasing 152 for victory, skipper Babar (68) and his partner Mohammad Rizwan (79) steered the national team home with 13 deliveries to spare.

    “I can’t explain that moment. We were not thinking about the past record, trying to stay in the present. The way we started and finished had a different feel and buzz to it.. and the response from fans was amazing too. We hadn’t registered a win (against India) in the World Cups and Allah helped us change that. It was a team effort. We had belief. There was no overconfidence,” said Babar in a PCB Podcast episode on YouTube.

    The Men in Green reached the semi-finals of the T20 World Cup after topping Group B. However, their impressive journey came to an end with a defeat to eventual champions Australia in the semis. Babar described it as a heartbreaking moment for Pakistan.

    “We had put in the effort… we had dominated the World Cup. But unfortunately, we couldn’t win that match. We made mistakes as a team but we need to learn from it and deliver a better performance next time,” said Babar, who finishes with the year with 939 runs from 29 T20 Internationals.

    “Doesn’t matter how you start when you finish well. We finished the year on an outstanding note. We played some positive cricket throughout the year and tried to leave an impact. We’ve had different Man of the Match contenders for every match. Unfortunately, we bowed out of T20 World Cup but we did learn from that defeat. We have had discussions on the mistakes and will try to improve day by day.”

    “Talking about performances, Rizwan and Shaheen were brilliant. Hasan too. Youngsters like Abdullah, Wasim and Dhani have been impressive too. It’s a plus point for us and hopefully, we carry on the momentum. We had assigned roles to players and that led to better performances. I had the belief that we had match-winners in our team and the boys proved that. Thanks to the fans too and we hope to get a similar kind of support next year,” said the 27-year-old batter.

    Babar stands on top of the table of both white-ball formats. While Rizwan stands on third position in the ICC T20I Batting Rankings for the first time in his career.

    Check out here:

  • Aakash Chopra schools Indian netizen who called Rizwan ‘loser’

    Aakash Chopra schools Indian netizen who called Rizwan ‘loser’

    Former Indian cricketer and commentator Aakash Chopra schooled a netizen after the latter called Pakistan wicket keeper-batter Mohammad Rizwan a ‘loser’.

    Read More – ‘Sirf Allah se hota hai’: Mohammad Rizwan after scoring 2,000 record T20 runs in a year

    Chopra had recently published a video, praising Rizwan’s performance in the T20 format. However, a netizen posted a screenshot of that video and claimed that India’s star batter Virat Kohli had already achieved the feats before Rizwan, which was factually incorrect.

    https://twitter.com/ItzAbhizz/status/1472818226123849728?s=20

    Responding to the Twitter user, Aakash shared the stats for the most T20 runs scored in a calender year, which clearly showed that Rizwan was ahead of Kohli.

    He further wrote: “People see what they want to see. It wasn’t a comparison with anyone. It’s a fact. Number of innings/matches irrelevant. It’s incredible that we can’t even appreciate an effort without caveats.”

    It must be noted that the prolific batter also has the most runs — 1326 — in T20I cricket, this year, at a stunning average of 73.66 and strike-rate of 134.89. His runs tally includes 12 fifties, most by any player this year, and a hundred. He also stands at the top of the table in terms of sixes hit this year, with 42 against his name.

    Read More – ‘Was breathless’: Mohammad Rizwan talks about health, pillow he carries

    Rizwan’s 158-run opening stand for the first wicket with Babar Azam, in the third T20I against West Indies recently, also helped the duo break the record for most hundred partnerships as a pair, six, in T20I cricket. The record was previously held by India’s Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul, with five century partnerships.

  • Sourav Ganguly says he likes Virat Kohli’s attitude but ‘he fights a lot’

    Sourav Ganguly says he likes Virat Kohli’s attitude but ‘he fights a lot’

    Former Indian cricketer and Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) President Sourav Ganguly has said that he is a huge admirer of Virat Kohli’s attitude, however, he expressed unhappiness with the crickter’s tendency to pick up fights with everyone.

    Read More – Rohit Sharma replaces Virat Kohli as India’s ODI captain, to take over from South Africa series

    Ganguly made the comments in an event in Gurgaon while answering which player has the best attitude according to him. “I like Virat Kohli’s attitude but he fights a lot,” said the BCCI president.

    Both the Indian cricketing giants left the fans confused after Kohli contradicted Ganguly’s statements regarding captaincy shuffle.

    Kohli, while addressing a press conference ahead of India’s tour to South Africa, claimed that he wasn’t asked to continue to lead the side in the shorter format. However, days before the presser, the BCCI president said in an interview that he personally approached Kohli to remain at the helm in T20Is.

    In the same presser, India’s Test captain also put an end to the speculations of a rift between him and senior batter Rohit Sharma, stating he has been doing the same for the past two years and urged people to look beyond it.

    Ganguly was also asked about how to manage stress, to which the former India captain had a very sarcastic answer. “There is no stress in life. Only wife and girlfriend give stress,” he said.

    Meanwhile, after Kohli’s explosive presser, the BCCI president refused to comment much about it and asserted that the BCCI will deal with it.

    Kohli and his unit are currently in South Africa where they will play a three-match Test series starting from December 26.

  • Amidst break-up rumours of Maya Ali-Sheheryar Munawar, Haris Rauf wants to take her out on a dinner date

    Amidst break-up rumours of Maya Ali-Sheheryar Munawar, Haris Rauf wants to take her out on a dinner date

    Actors Sheheryar Munawar and Maya Ali grabbed headlines during the release of their film Parey Hut Love for allegedly being in a serious relationship, the duo went through ups and downs in their love life over the years.

    Sheheryar Munawar

    According to sources, the two have officially parted ways a while ago but made it official by unfollowing each other on social media.

    A couple of weeks ago, in an interview, the young cricketer revealed that if he could take any actress on a dinner date, he’d go with with the Teefa In Trouble diva.

    Now again during his Instagram Q/A he was asked about that dinner and the cricketer revealed that he’s still wishing and waiting for her response.

    Netizens gave amusing response to his statement. A certain netizen commented that they can be the Anushka Sharma and Virat Kohli of Pakistan.

    virat-anushka wedding: Virushka wedding: The super-exclusive and ultra-expensive celebrity union - The Economic Times

    Trouble in Paradise: Maya Ali, Sheheryar Munawar unfollow each other after an alleged break-up

  • Virushka celebrate fourth anniversary sharing goofy pictures

    Virushka celebrate fourth anniversary sharing goofy pictures

    Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma and Indian Cricketer Virat Kohli are celebrating their fourth wedding anniversary.

    Taking to Instagram, Anushka shared a bunch of their photos, enjoying each others company.

    Anushka also shared a warm note dedicated to Virat. “There is no easy way out, there is no shortcut home. Your favourite song and words you’ve lived by always. These words hold true for everything including relationships. Takes tremendous courage to be the person you are in a world filled with perceptions ands optics. Thank you for inspiring me when I needed it and for keeping your mind open when you needed to listen. Marriage of equals is only possible when both are secure. And you are the most secure man I know! Like I’ve said earlier, fortunate are those who really know the real you, the soul behind all the achievements, the man behind all the projections cast upon you.. May love, honesty, transparency and respect guide us always. P.S. : May we never stop goofin’ around. I love that about us,” she wrote.

    In the photos, Anushka and Virat are seen making goofy faces for the camera, posing for pictures while washing dishes, him pushing their daughter Vamika in a stroller, clicking pictures with Santa Claus on Christmas and more.

    Anushka and Virat tied the knot in Italy’s Lake Como in December 2017. Their secret wedding set precedent for other celebrity weddings as well. The couple welcomed their bundle of joy Vamika in January this year.