Virat Kohli wins over IPL star’s heart with humility amidst Amit Mishra’s scathing ‘changed with fame and power’ remark.

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Virat Kohli waves during a ceremony at Wankhede Stadium, Mumbai, celebrating India’s T20 World Cup win. (AP)

Punjab Kings batter Shashank Singh also shared an anecdote from IPL 2024 when he talked to Kohli for about 40 minutes on the ground after the match. The ex-IND captain shared his insights about batting technique and mental strength with him.

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“He was standing, I was standing. We were standing for 40 minutes. I didn’t even know when 40 minutes passed,” Shashank Singh told InsideSport.

“Our team position was 12:45. It was 12:40, I didn’t know when 40 minutes passed. And we were talking about cricket, about technique, about shots, about mental chatter,” he added.

Shashank had a breakthrough IPL season for Punjab Kings, where he scored 354 runs at a strike rate of 164.65 as he helped his side win a couple of matches on his own. He flourished well in the finisher’s role and grabbed the attention of many with his power-hitting.

 

The 32-year-old said when he talked to Kohli, it felt like he was talking to a friend and one of his Chhattisgarh teammates.

“And the way he was answering, it felt like, keep doing it, keep doing it. It felt like, he is one of our Chhattisgarh players. He was so friendly, talking to me to help me understand. It felt so good to talk to him,” he added.

He also talked about how players like Kohli try to point out the positives in everything and not bring negative thoughts into their minds.

“He told me what to do next, how to work on things. He gave me a lot of confidence. Once I talked to him, I realised that he never says anything negative. He is always positive,” said Shashank.

Meanwhile, Kohli was recently targeted by veteran India spinner Amit Mishra, who asserted that the batting superstar had changed with fame and captaincy.

“I have seen Virat change a lot. We had almost stopped talking. When you get fame and power, they think people are reaching out to them for a purpose. I was never one of those. I have known Cheeku since the time he was 14, when he used to eat Samosas, when he needed Pizza every night. But there is a huge difference in the Cheeku I knew and Virat Kohli the captain. Whenever he meets me, he is very respectful, but it’s obviously not the same anymore,” Mishra told YouTuber Shubhankar Mishra.