Virat’s Special Day: Holding a Cricket Bat at 3, His Father’s Passing During a Match, and a ‘Tutu-Me-Me’ Encounter with Virushka

It’s been almost a minute and a half since a slice of cheese fell in Delhi, but on November 5, 1988, lawyer Prem Kohli heard the first cries of his son, who was named Chiku. Today, that same Chiku is resonating in cricket stadiums all over the world under the name of Virat. At the age of 3, he first held a cricket bat in his hand, and today, at the age of 35, Chiku, known as Virat Kohli, is a name that reverberates in every cricket stadium, recognized as the King of the world.

At the age of 9, Virat Kohli was enrolled in the West Delhi Cricket Academy by his father. Watching Sachin play on television had a huge impact on this young boy who grew up to match the records and reputation of Sachin Tendulkar in the cricket world. However, this journey has been no less than a roller coaster ride.

Today, on Virat Kohli’s 35th birthday, let’s take a look at his cricket career and personal journey.

Year 2006: In February, Virat made his debut in List A cricket, and in December, he was playing in the Ranji Trophy. On December 18, during a match against Karnataka, Virat received the news of his father’s passing. He chose not to go home and continued playing. He scored 90 runs in that match. When a journalist asked him about it later, Virat said, “I remember that night, but I decided not to go home after my father’s demise. But I decided to play in the morning because not completing a cricket match would have been a sin…”

Year 2008: In the early years of the year, Virat’s captaincy in the U-19 World Cup helped India win the title. His performances in the tournament earned him a spot in the senior ODI team.

Year 2011: Virat Kohli made his entry into the World Cup team and made a significant impact in his very first match, hitting a century. In the same year, the Indian cricket team became World Champions for the second time.

Year 2013: After winning the Champions Trophy, Virat Kohli became a favorite brand ambassador. During this year, he also started his relationship with Anushka Sharma, and their friendship and dating became well-known.

Year 2015: Kohli became the captain of the Indian Test team. During India’s tour of Australia, he not only became the first Indian to score three centuries in a Test series in Australia, but he also openly blew a flying kiss to Anushka Sharma while sitting in the stadium, publicly acknowledging their relationship.

Year 2016: In the Indian Premier League (IPL), Kohli had a remarkable year, scoring a record 973 runs. This year, he was also listed in Forbes’ “30 under 30” list for the first time.

Year 2017: In December, Kohli tied the knot with Anushka Sharma. It was in the same year that Puma signed Kohli as its brand ambassador for a whopping ₹110 crores for an 8-year deal.

Year 2021: At one point, Kohli even considered stepping down from captaincy, especially during the Australia tour, due to the birth of his first child. Kohli’s daughter was born on January 11, 2021. However, due to a dip in form, Kohli first resigned from T20 captaincy and later had to relinquish the ODI captaincy as well.

Year 2022: Finally, in the T20 match against Afghanistan, Kohli ended his century drought. It took 1022 days for him to achieve an international century. Then, 1,212 days later, he hit a century in a One Day International (ODI) match against Bangladesh. In 2023, 1,203 days after his last century, he scored a Test century against Australia.

In this World Cup, Kohli converted from a run machine to a century machine. His work-life balance has prioritized relationships, and the brand “Kohli” is worth more than 1000 crore rupees today. However, some fans believe that he is not at his best anymore, and his innings have been a bit inconsistent lately.