BCCI applauds Virat Kohli and Smriti Mandhana for their achievements
However, only Kohli was present at the Rashtrapati Bhavan to receive the award as Mandhana was on Sri Lanka tour.
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On Tuesday, Indian cricketers, Virat Kohli and Smiri Mandhana bagged the top national honours for their achievements in cricket. While the Indian skipper won the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna award, the latter was bestowed with the Arjuna award. However, only Kohli was present at the Rashtrapati Bhavan to receive the honours from President Shri Ramnath Kovind as Mandhana was on Sri Lanka tour.
Virat Kohli is only the third Indian cricketer to receive the Khel Ratna Award after Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni. The Board of Cricket Control in India (BCCI) seemed to be mighty pleased with these achievements. The cricket board also released a statement congratulating the duo after the ceremony.
Extremely proud of Virat and Smriti
In its statement, the BCCI stated that they were extremely proud of Virat Kohli and Smriti Mandhana. Furthermore, the COA chairman Vinod Rai went on to say that the award was a testimony of Virat’s work ethic, dedication and unwavering focus.
“We are extremely proud that Virat Kohli and Smriti Mandhana are being conferred with top honours by the Government of India. Virat is just the third Indian cricketer to receive the prestigious Khel Ratna award. This is a testimony to his work ethic, dedication and unwavering focus,” he said.
Also, Mr Rai added that the 29-year-old was leading the team with distinction. He lauded Kohli for his consistency across formats and credited the skipper for the fitness transformation of the side.
“He has led India with distinction and at the same time, set new records with the bat. Playing different formats of the game, Virat has shown amazing consistency leading the side by example. This Indian team is one of the fittest sides in world cricket and a lot of credit must go to the Indian captain for bringing about this transformation, he added.
The BCCI also took it to Twitter to congratulate the modern-day legend and shared the full video of him receiving the honour.
🙌🇮🇳👏
Congratulations to #TeamIndia Captain @imVkohli on being conferred upon with the prestigious Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award by the President of India, Shri Ram Nath Kovind.
Full video📹https://t.co/Y302AKgNN1 pic.twitter.com/opcMMEj3Q1
— BCCI (@BCCI) September 25, 2018
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