Decoding 5 unknown facts about different cricketers

3. Why Virat Kohli has 9 tattoos on his body?

After leading the Indian youth side to the Under 19 World Cup title in 2008, Virat Kohli has come a long way since the last decade. He is not only the captain of the Indian cricket team but is also the best batsmen across all three formats in the world right now.

During his journey to success, Virat Kohli got his body inked nine times. Each and every tattoo on Virat’s body has a story to tell and signifies a turning point in the life of the dashing Indian batsman.

Kohli often talked about the support he got from his parents since his childhood. Although he lost his father at the age of eighteen, he never really got over the love he had for his father. Indian captain got the names of his parents, Saroj and Prem inked to express the emotion till the last day of his life. Kohli’s left forearm has a tattoo of Lord Shiva meditating with Mount Kailash and Lake Manasarovar in the background.

Just beside the tattoo of Lord Shiva, there is a tattoo of a monastery. It is important for the most important man in Indian cricket to keep his cool from inside. The tattoo symbolises peace of mind that helps him to remain calm and think wisely. Kohli’s list of tattoos has his ODI and Test cap number. In 2008, Kohli became 175th Indian cricketer to play for India in ODIs and within the next three years, he became the 269th Indian Test player.

The tribal art represents aggression which is certainly an important trait of Kohli. The ‘tribal art’ is the first tattoo he got before painting his whole body with different art. The right arm of Kohli has a tattoo of a Scorpio. This was done because Kohli is a scorpion by birth and it is his sun sign. The right-hander’s birthday is on November 5 1988.

Virat also has a tattoo of a Japanese Samurai that is based on the Bushido code of the Samurai The tattoo of a big celestial eye. In Kohli’s own words, he calls it– God’s eye. The 9th tattoo is the Om symbol that is the universal sound. This helps the Indian legend to understand the essence of life. This keeps him grounded because the human being is nothing but a dust particle in the universe.