“I got in touch with Novak very organically”- Kohli reveals his first interaction with Djokovic on Instagram
Virat Kohli and Novak Djokovic are two of the biggest sporting icons in the world. India’s run machine, Virat Kohli is part of the Indian squad for the ongoing T20I series against Afghanistan, while Novak Djokovic is plying his trade in the Australian Open 2024.
After missing the first T20I due to personal reasons, Kohli made his presence felt in the second game on Sunday. He smashed 29 runs in just 16 deliveries at a strike rate of 181.25. He drew praise from fans for his aggressive approach in the shortest format.
India went on to win the game and seal the series 2-0. After the game’s conclusion, BCCI uploaded a video on their Twitter handle in which Virat Kohli shared his bond with Tennis superstar Novak Djokovic.
Kohli revealed how he interacted with Djokovic for the first time on Instagram.
“I got in touch with Novak very organically. I was just looking at his Instagram profile once and happened to press his “Message” button. I thought I would say him ‘Hello, maybe.’ Then I saw a message from him on my DM already. I never saw it myself.”
“The first time I saw my own messages, I saw that he had messaged me himself. Then I was like, Let’s check if it is a fake account or not. But then I checked it and it was legitimate. Then we started talking, exchanging messages every now and then. I would congratulate him on all of his fantastic achievements,”
Virat Kohli hails Djokovic’s passion for fitness and talks about the mutual respect the duo has for each other.
“I have a lot of respect for him and his journey; his passion for fitness is something I follow and believe in myself. So there is a lot to connect on. Hopefully, when he comes to India or if I happen to be in a country where he is playing, I will catch up with him and just chill out and have a cup of coffee,” said Virat.
With regards to the recent viral video involving Djokovic and Steve Smith, Kohli heaped praise on the latter for his amazing return to Djokovic’s body serve and also expressed his interest in playing Tennis with the Serbian Tennis star.
“I think Steve did well to return his serve. When you play cricket and have hand-eye coordination, you feel tempted to say, “Yeah, I can do this (play racquet sports). But I have seen racquet sports and how fast these serves are. So I have no chance with it. It will be nice to do that (play tennis) with him as well. The only thing I can maybe teach him is how to hold a bat,” said Virat.
Toward the end of the video, Virat Kohli wished him success in the ongoing Australian Open tournament. Here’s what he said:
“Novak I would like to wish you the very best for the Australian Open. I know how excited and prepared you are for these big events, these grand slams. I do not doubt that we will see Djokovic as we have seen over the years. I hope you have a great tournament.”
Recently, Novak Djokovic also acknowledged Virat Kohli’s kind words and shared a sweet response to the video on his Twitter handle.
“Thank you for these kind words @imVkohli. Looking forward to the day we play together.”, wrote Djokovic.
Read More: Novak Djokovic Opens Up About Friendship with Virat Kohli
