Cricket is often associated with emotion, this is probably because our nation treats the sport as something very special. This, in-turn, means that the players are just as important to us. The kind of love that Virat Kohli gets, is one example. So understandably, it means a whole lot when fans get to meet him. Of course, people are left with different experiences, but it’s always exciting to get to hear these stories.
Some people who have met the cricketer talked about how it was:
1. “We happened to have tickets of a stand where the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB of IPL) franchise players were standing nearby. Then for a good amount of time, we started showing ‘V signs’ with our hands and simultaneously shouted. Finally Virat Kohli notices us. He saw us for a while and promptly walked down to our stand, picked our piece of paper and viola, we got Virat Kohli’s autograph!”
2. “Mid-flight, when I was returning back to my seat, the aisle was blocked because of the food trolley. I saw Kohli playing a game, similar to what I was playing, on his tablet. He sucked at it. He saw me smiling, and gave me his tablet. He said, “I seem to have some trouble with this one.” After I got through that level, he gave me a fist-bump! Cool, isn’t it?”
– Anonymous
3. “We were in West Indies, staying at the same hotel, the cricketers were staying at. We saw Virat Kohli quite a few times during our stay. My wife and I were walking around the hotel after breakfast. Virat Kohli was walking towards us, we said hi, he said hi and smiled. The next day, we were sitting in our patio, happily singing. Virat Kohli was walking up the open stairs. He peeped in thinking it was Dhoni’s room. When we looked at him, he apologized to us a couple of times. A couple of nights later, we finally asked him if we could take a picture with him. He asked both my wife and I to come, asked his brother (who was also visiting) to take a picture.”
4. “I was waiting for a glimpse of Virat Kohli kohli at Hotel Taj. He along with the rest of the team, came after the match inning was over. I said, “Hi Virat” – to which he replied, “Hi”. I asked for a selfie and he agreed, but the moment I opened my phone’s camera my phone started acting up. Suddenly the security guards pushed me aside as they were getting late for rooms. I was disappointed, but all of a sudden Virat asked the security guard to move aside and called me to click a selfie with him.”
5. “Five years back, West Indies toured India, and Indore was the host for a one-day international. I was a professional cricketer back then and when teams arrived, few local bowlers were called up to share a practice session with these distinguished cricketers. I got an opportunity to meet Virat Kohli in that practice session. It was a great experience”
6. “It was my last day at IBM Research, New Delhi and I was leaving for the US for Ph.D. For my farewell, a couple of my friends took me to a restaurant named Mocha Arthouse in South Delhi. Suddenly I realized that Virat was seating next to our table. He was already playing for India and I was extremely impressed by his talent. So, I talked to him for a minute and requested for a picture. He was very humble.”
7. “It turned out that I got to be in the same flight as the RCB team. I approached Kohli and asked for an autograph, I was a little younger than 13 at that time, so he didn’t mind be disturbing him as I was still a child. Just as he was about to take my book and pen, a manager came, when Kohli looked at me, smiled and said “Baad mein” while being very polite and kind, but sadly I didn’t get to go back to his seat after that. Right after the plane landed, he looked back towards me and smiled for one last time, I will always remember that smile of his and how affectionate he was with me.”
8. “I walked past him on the street. It was the World Cup and he was walking down Elizabeth street in Melbourne. I noticed him coming and said, “Good luck tomorrow” (he was playing the next day at the MCG). He smiled and said thanks.”
9. “I had the opportunity to meet VIrat Kohli after a practice session long time back when he was just growing in the sidelines during IPL. He was a bit tired though. I was the ball boy for the session.”
10. “This happened to me on April 1, 2019, when I literally met him or actually saw him too close to me at the Hyderabad Airport. I tried clicking pictures with him and so kind of him that he looked above at the camera.”
Meeting our heroes is not always a bad idea.
Checkout: Virat Kohli Water Price
