5 Times when Virat Kohli was trolled by Indian fans

Be it for the good or the bad, Virat Kohli often trends on Twitter and other social media. The Indian skipper Virat Kohli is undoubtedly one of the best batsmen of the modern era. Hence, it’s inevitable that the world will be at his feet when he goes about his business on the field.

However, there are times, both on and off the field, when he errs. Hence, social media which affects and influences everybody’s lives on a day to day basis does not spare anybody. Kohli has been subject to trolls on multiple occasions.

Some of the trolls have been because of his wife Anushka Sharma while others have been due to on-field performances and actions or even for putting out some commercial posts. Thus, Kohli is more often than not red-hot on social media. Thus, here are the top five times Kohli was trolled by the fans.

1. ‘You should not live in India then’

It’s no secret that Virat Kohli is an outspoken individual. He speaks his mind more often than not, be it on the field or off it. The Indian captain has also faced a lot of criticism for some of the statements he’s made.

Last year, Kohli launched his own app and had an interactive session on that platform. He was answering and replying to a few questions from the fans. One of the fans wrote that Kohli is pretty overrated and he prefers watching English and Australian batsmen more than the Indian batsmen.

Kohli seemed pretty miffed at the tweet and replied that the fan should not live in India then. “Okay, I don’t think you should live in India then… you should go and live somewhere else no. Why are you living in our country and loving other countries? I don’t mind you not liking me but I don’t think you should live in our country and like other things. Get your priorities right,” Kohli was quoted saying while replying to that tweet.

Indian Captain @imVkohli wants Indians who enjoy Australian and English batting more than Indian batting to move out of India and stay in those countries. pic.twitter.com/IlkSFhB7f5

— Mohammed Zubair (@zoo_bear) November 7, 2018

2. ‘Detox your ego’

Reading a book on a cricket field during a game is nothing new. Mithali Raj was trending during the Women’s World Cup in 2017 when she used to read a book before walking out to bat.

Recently, Indian captain Virat Kohli was seen reading a book during the first Test against West Indies in Antigua. He had been dismissed early on the first day and he resorted to reading a book at the start of the second day’s play. Kohli was reading a book titled ‘Detox your ego’.

Fans trolled Kohli for his choice of book, given his past. Kohli was a pretty short-tempered and brash when he started out as a cricketer. However, he has toned down and has become a lot calmer. However, fans trolled the Indian skipper for various reasons, including him trying to copy Mithali Raj.

Looks like someone gifted him the right book!#WIvIND @imVkohli pic.twitter.com/cItklD3kqd

— Ash△⃒⃘ (@ixSUPERBOYxi) August 23, 2019

lmao Kohli reading a book that says 7 esay steps to achieve success and happiness 😂😂dude watching too many YouTube videos these days

— Sayan (@earthtrackbully) August 23, 2019

3. Ravi Shastri’s re-appointment as coach

Ravi Shastri has been India’s crisis man over the years. He has often been called upon whenever India have been under the pump. He was appointed as Team Director in mid-2014 and stayed till the end of the World T20 in 2016. Shastri was the head coach from 2017 to 2019.

India did well under Shastri but failed on big Test tours in England and South Africa. Moreover, they failed to cross the semi-final hurdle in the 2019 World Cup. However, he was re-appointed for another couple of years, till 2021. One of the reasons for Shastri’s re-appointment has to be the backing he has from Virat Kohli.

Thus, the former India all-rounder’s re-appointment led to the trolling of Kohli. Fans accused Kohli of being the man behind Shastri’s selection once again. Thus, there were various memes that came out and Kohli was the subject to most of them.

Virat Kohli standing on the other side. https://t.co/bjh7MWtZIj

— Shashank मिश्र (@shashank109) August 17, 2019

" #RaviShastri has been reappointmented as India's head coach. "

Virat Kohli: pic.twitter.com/is6lKJsley

— Ashish (@_Jaarvis) August 16, 2019

Virat Kohli to the board deciding India's next coach #RaviShastri pic.twitter.com/ky04EeTE95

— Rudresh Ranaswi (@rude_n_humble) August 16, 2019

4. Lashing out at the Wankhede crowd

Virat Kohli’s relationship with the crowd has been a love-hate one. Be it the finger incident in Sydney in 2012 or the dig at the Wankhede crowd, he’s been bold at making a statement. During the 2013 season of the IPL, Kohli’s RCB suffered a 58-run loss to Mumbai Indians at the Wankhede Stadium.

During the game, Kohli affected two run-outs via direct hits. The second of those was to dismiss Ambati Rayudu who got into a tangle with bowler Vinay Kumar. However, that collision was non-intentional. Yet, Rayudu was given out. Thus, the Wankhede crowd booed and trolled Kohli for not taking back the appeal.

Kohli lashed out at the crowd stating that it (booing) only creates hatred among the players. “I don’t know what is wrong with people in this venue. It feels a bit weird because at the end of the day you play for India and you don’t come here to be hated. It has happened to a few players in the past as well. I don’t know why they get so worked up during IPL. IPL is not the end of the world. They forget that the players they are booing for also play for their country,” Kohli said.

The FIFA World Cup curse

This troll seems to be the most illogical one of them all. Virat Kohli follows football and came out in support of Germany for the 2018 FIFA World Cup. In fact, the Indian skipper even posted a picture with the German jersey.

However, the European side was eliminated pretty early in the tournament. They lost to South Korea and Mexico in their group stage games. Hence, Kohli was held accountable. The fans felt it was the curse of Kohli supporting Germany. They felt that his inability to win an IPL with Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) also played a part.

Moreover, Kohli got married to Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma in Tuscany, Italy. Thus, he was trolled as Italy didn’t qualify for the FIFA World Cup in 2018. Fans compared how Italy and Germany became unlucky because of Kohli.

#RIP #GERMANY @imVkohli ❤❤❤💓 pic.twitter.com/CWJGyBFf44

— Adeel (@Mrfaarig) July 1, 2018

Virrrrraaaaattttt. #ViratKohli #virat kohli #rcb #Italy #GER #germany #WorldCup . The effect of Virat pic.twitter.com/mngfKsuha4

— Ahmad Babar (@babar_ahmad) June 27, 2018