The Badman who turned an enigma - The incredible journey of Virat Kohli

Exuberance, a rush of blood and unnecessary aggression at times, it’s common to see these behavioural facets in a youngster who just entered the elite level. Virat Kohli was no different, but the lad was meddling in things which he should never be and his talent was overlooked for a period. Time flew like a tracer bullet (In Ravi Shastri style) and here’s Kohli, playing his 200th ODI game for India.

Already touted as a legend and one of the greatest limited overs batsmen in cricket history, Kohli’s journey is no less than a Karan Johar directorial. There was drama, there was action, there were some heartwarming moments and there were innumerable occasions when he fought like a soldier on the border, putting his life at stake thwarting the enemies from forging through.

“The king of run chases”, a title he earned by amassing the most number of hundred during a run chase in ODI history. He’s not even 30 and is well past Tendulkar in this aspect. It’s eye-popping for any cricket fan or critic to see what all he’s achieved in just under a decade since making his debut and it’s highly impossible to describe his career in a nutshell.

2017 will remain a special year for the 28-year-old, who was made the captain of the national side in all formats. Watching a cool and calm MS Dhoni for 9 years, people found it difficult to get acclimatized to this change. There were some controversial moments on his path, but the results he’s achieved are making the noise. On this momentous occasion, let’s throw light on some of the unchartered segments.

Inevitable Altercations

Kohli never backs off from verbal reciprocation and over the years, he has managed to shut few mouths both with the bat and words. Beginning from his altercation with discarded Indian opener Gautam Gambhir in IPL 2013, there were innumerable occasions where he did cross the line a wee bit.

His love affair with Aussie cricketers like Steve Smith, Mitchell Johnson, and most importantly, James Faulkner has never been a hideous one. Smith and co took it to another level when they mocked his injury during the Test series this year. To add to it, his image was grotesquely mocked by some Australian media sources and few even compared him to the United States President Donald Trump in a wrong way.

The mishap with Anil Kumble

Something that will always remain as a dark spot on his career is his misunderstanding with Anil Kumble, which eventually led to the former quitting his job as the Indian coach. A disciplinarian par excellence, Kumble never backs off when it comes to training vociferously. His apparent “Head-masterly” attitude saw Kohli report to the BCCI. The lucrative board has always taken the captain’s side in such captain-coach fiascos and this time, it was no different. Kohli was also trolled on social media for not wishing Anil Kumble on his birthday recently.

Aggression porting from his body to the willow

There’s a clear difference between Virat Kohli – the Under-19 captain and Virat Kohli – the Indian captain. Many say his aggression has dipped for his own good, but that ain’t true, he just chose a different medium to express it. All the energy and vibrancy which was palpable through his words and body language are now coming out from his bat. Verbal or facial expressions don’t appear regularly and the only thing that talks is his willow.

Blossoming love life

When the media started collecting pictures of Kohli and Anushka Sharma initially, their pair was the talk of the town in both Bollywood and Cricket. Their much hyped about relation took peculiar turns, but in recent times, neither Kohli or Anushka have backed off from expressing their love for each other on social networking platforms or interviews. Their recent commercial for the traditional attires brand Manyavar was just a perfect icing on the cake for all the fans, who are nothing but jealous of this amazing couple.