IPL 2020 in UAE : Virat Kohli turns 32, Happy Birthday wishes pour in

Indian skipper Virat Kholi, who is currently in UAE for the IPL, turns 32 on Thursday. The cricket captain is married to Bollywood star Anushka Sharma and together the couple – known by fans as ‘ Virushka’ – enjoy a large fan following. This year Kholi has much to celebrate including fatherhood. But before that, here’s a look at some other milestones from his life.

Kohli has been playing since he was very, very young. He scored well in inter-school cricket, got into the Delhi Under-15 team and began to score centuries, soon graduating to the Under-17 team. He got selected into the India Under-19 team in 2006 for a tour of England, where he averaged 106 in that three-match ODI series. India’s Under-19 coach Lalchand Rajput predicted a great future for him. And he was right. Kohli became the youth team captain and went on to lift the 2008 ICC Under-19 World Cup.

Kohli's emergence as a phenomenon in the last decade was largely built around his sheer will and determination - from a brash youngster of Delhi to arguably one of the best batsmen in the history of the sport.

In ICC ODI rankings for batsmen, the Indian skipper holds the numero uno spot. Kohli is credited for bringing a change in the fitness aspect of the game.

He changed the game of fandom too. While India is obsessed with the game, it is Kohli’s engagement with his fans on social media that has won him great popularity. Currently, the ace batsmen is also one of the most followed Indians on Instagram with a whopping fan base of 82.2 million followers.

Royal Challengers Bangalore took to social media to wish their captain. "To the man who's given blood, sweat and tears to the Red and Gold. To our Leader and Legend, Here's wishing KING KOHLI a very Happy Birthday!!" RCB wrote in their posts on both Twitter and Instagram, along with a graphic of the batsman. "Have a great day, Skip!" they added in their wish to a player who has been with the team since the inception of the cash-rich league in 2008.

Yuvraj Singh led birthday wishes for Indian captain on Twitter.“Janamdin mubarak ho King Kohli @imVkohli! Wishing the great Indian batsman a very Happy Birthday! Jahan bhi ho khush raho, chhake chauke maarte raho, all the best for the playoffs! Hope @RCBTweets turns it around this time,” Yuvraj tweeted.

India head coach Ravi Shastri, who along with Kohli has produced some wonderful results for India, including reaching the semifinal of the 2019 World Cup, put out an expressive tweet for the Indian skipper. “To someone that has set the bar in fitness standards and work ethics at an all-time high and achieved greatness at such a young age. Wishing you a very happy birthday. God bless. @imVkohli #HappyBirthdayVirat,” Shastri tweeted.

India fast bowler Mohammed Shami, who emerged as ODI cricket’s leading wicket-taker in 2019, has played his best cricket under Kohli and took the opportunity to wish his captain. “I wish you a very Happy Birthday. May you have many more years of success and happiness ahead! Birthday cakeBirthday cakeBirthday cake @imVkohli,” Shami tweeted.

The BCCI too posted a tweet to wish Kohli : ''• 2011 World Cup-winner • 21,901 runs, 70 centuries in intl. cricket • Most Test wins as Indian captain • Leading run-getter in T20Is (Men's) Wishing #TeamIndia captain @imVkohli a very happy birthday. 👏🎂 Let's revisit his Test best of 254* vs South Africa 🎥👇.''