Former India cricketer Virat Kohli has launched a scathing attack on India legend Sunil Gavaskar, saying that he does not need anyone’s approval or assurance about his game. Kohli’s comments came ahead of the IPL 2024 clash between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Chennai Super Kings at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium.
Kohli has been criticized for his strike rate in the T20 format, especially against spinners and in the middle overs. However, Kohli hit back at his critics following his match-winning 70* against Gujarat Titans, where he scored 61 runs against the spinners at a strike rate of 179.
Furious at the former India captain’s explosive remark, Gavaskar blasted Kohli live on-air.
On Saturday, ahead of the all-important IPL 2024 clash, which will decide RCB’s fate for the playoffs, Kohli, in an interview on JioCinema, said that he does not need to react to outside noise as he is well aware of his capabilities.
“I don’t need to react to any external noise. I know what I can do on the ground. I don’t need to tell anyone what kind of player I am or what my ability is. I’ve never asked anyone how to win a match. I’ve learnt this by figuring it out myself in the middle of the ground by failing from experience. It’s not a by-chance thing when you’re repeatedly winning matches for the team. For someone to see and analyse a moment and for another player to experience that moment in the middle are two completely different things. I have never felt that I should go and tell someone not to say certain things about me. I know what I can do out there,” Kohli said.
The 35-year-old also took a savage dig at Gavaskar saying that he does not need any nod of appreciation or approval from any critics, something he admitted he learned from his father early in his career.
“I don’t need anyone’s approval, or assurance that I played well. I don’t need these things. I have learnt this from my father very early on. I could have played the state very early in my career through other means, but my father said only if you’re capable you will make it. Performance is my only currency,” Kohli added.
– ‘People used to say the same about MS Dhoni’ –
The former RCB captain took a leaf out of Dhoni’s career saying that he often faced criticism for taking the game deep instead of finishing it early, but the legendary wicketkeeper trusted his process and led India and CSK to many match-winning games in his illustrious career.
“People used to say the same about Mahi bhai (Mahendra Singh Dhoni). ‘Why is he taking the game to 20th over or 50th over?’ But how many matches did he finish for India! He’s probably the only person who knows what he’s doing! And he’s finishing the game from there. For me, that’s muscle memory. He knows if he takes the match till the last over, he’ll win the game. My mindset was different. I used to think let’s finish the game in the 49th over (in ODIs) or 19th over (in T20s). If he was batting with me at the end, then the thinking was different. He will take the game into the last over where the opposition team is shivering in fear,” Kohli further added.
Kohli’s comments have sparked a debate on social media, with some fans supporting his stance and others criticizing him for his arrogance. It remains to be seen how Gavaskar will respond to Kohli’s latest attack.
