NEW DELHI: After a heated and ugly confrontation in the IPL last year, Virat Kohli and Gautam Gambhir, this season, buried the hatchet and were seen hugging and sharing smiles together after the Royal Challengers Bengaluru vs Kolkata Knight Riders clash.
And during the ODI World Cup in India last year, Kohli also hugged Afghanistan’s Naveen Ul Haq, ending animosity between them.
But as Virat, Gambhir and Naveen showed maturity, ending their respective feuds, it has caused a lack of spice for the cricket fans in the country as they are used to enjoying Virat taking on the opposition players.
Virat, on Thursday, revealed that fans have been disappointed with his new cool and composed avatar, pointing out they have been denied the on-field ‘masala’ associated with the India star.
“Log boht disappointerd ho gaye hain. Mere behaviour se. Naveen ke sath maine jhappi daal li. Uss din Gauti bhai ne aa ke mereko jhappi daal di. Tumhara masala khatam ho gaya to tum boo kar rahe ho. (laughs) Arre bacchhe thodi hi na hain.” said Virat during an event organised by Asian Paints. (People are very disappointed with my behaviour. I hugged Naveen, and then the other day, Gauti bhai [Gautam Gambhir came and hugged me. Your masala is over so you’re booing. We’re not kids anymore.)
Kohli is currently the leading run scorer in the 17th edition of the cricketing extravaganza with 316 runs under his belt in 5 games. The 35-year-old has already hit a couple of half-centuries and a ton and has an average of over 105.
However, RCB have 4 defeats and a solitary win in their 5 matches so far this season.