'Well played Shera' - Virat Kohli lauds Mandeep Singh for staying with KXIP amidst his father's demise

Kings XI Punjab (KXIP) are on a winning spree in the ongoing edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL). They registered their fifth consecutive victory on October 26, Monday against Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) by 8 wickets at the Sharjah Cricket Stadium. With this win, the KL Rahul-led side reached to 12 points in the points tally with 6 wins in 12 games and occupied fourth position as they have a superior net run rate than KKR, who also have 12 points.

The main highlight of Punjab’s victory against the Knight Riders was the performance of the opening batsman Mandeep Singh. Though Mandeep had a slow start, he redeemed himself in the middle overs and brought in his maiden IPL half-century (66 unbeaten off 56 deliveries). It was an emotional performance for the right-hander as it was tribute to his late father who had passed a few days back.

Virat Kohli’s special message for Mandeep Singh

After Mandeep Singh’s splendid performance against the Knight Riders, the Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli also took to his official Instagram handle to shower praises on the young gun. Virat hailed Mandeep as Lion hearted and called him the most genuinely happy cricketer.

“The most genuinely happy cricketer I know. To do what you’ve done in this testing time is because of your faith in life and your positive attitude. Well played shera. He’s blessing you from above. @mandeeps12 Lion Hearted,” Kohli wrote in his Insta story.

Here’s the story

Mandeep Singh lost his father, 68-year-old former athletics coach Hardev, on October 23, Friday night and the cricketer attended the last rites through video call Saturday afternoon. His father was suffering from a liver infection and was on ventilator support at a Mohali hospital where he breathed his last.

Despite suffering a personal loss, Mandeep had graced the field on Saturday against Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) as an opener for KXIP since Mayank Agarwal was not available for the selection due to an injury. Mourning over the passing away of Hardev Singh, the KXIP players had sported the black armbands.

Mandeep Singh was lauded by many cricket pundits and fans for his dedication towards the game and the willingness of contributing to his team.