'He came and took the phone to click a selfie. And I was like ‘Wow’' - Shreyanka Patil recalls meeting Virat Kohli in her teens

The spotlight shone brightly on India's emerging talent Shreyanka Patil in the inaugural Women's Premier League (WPL). She hogged the headlines not just for her impressive batting but also for her aspirations to excel as a death-over specialist to stake claim as a reliable all-rounder.

She emerged as the leading wicket-taker for Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB), claiming six wickets in seven matches and despite a slightly higher economy rate at 9.84, her skills displayed promise. Meanwhile, she had a high moment in an earlier edition of the IPL as the teenager experienced a memorable fangirl moment when she met Virat Kohli. 

“My father’s friend worked with the RCB management and I said that I wanted a picture with Virat Kohli as he has been my inspiration. So, I finished practising for my state and went to the Chinnaswamy. Then he came and took the phone to click a selfie. And I was like ‘Wow’. I did not get a chance to talk to him then, which I did later, but it was a special moment to start off,” Shreyanka told India Today. 

‘When I dismissed Tahlia, I felt like bowling the ‘ball of the day’- Shreyanka Patil

Shreyanka was a part of the Indian squad in the recent ODI series against Australia, where the 21-year-old experienced moments of joy when she came tantalizingly close to securing a hat-trick. In the third game, the budding cricketer claimed the crucial wickets of Beth Mooney, Tahlia McGrath, and Ash Gardner and concluded with figures of 3/57. She expressed that McGrath's dismissal brought her particular excitement as she had discussed about the same with her coach in prior.

“It is Tahlia McGrath. I was discussing with my coach, and he said, ‘You have to get Tahlia out, you have to dismiss her bat-bad, LBW or something.’ I wanted Phoebe Litchfield, Tahlia, Beth Mooney... I mean I wanted everyone’s wicket, especially Tahlia and (Ellyse) Perry’s. I missed out on Perry, unfortunately, but then I am happy with how I bowled in ODIs. When I dismissed Tahlia, I felt like bowling the ‘ball of the day’,” she added.