‘Shukar hai aisa nahi hua’ – Fans react as Virat Kohli recalls thoughts of retirement after Asia Cup 2022 in IPL podcast

Virat Kohli, the star Indian hitter, has been outstanding recently. Since regaining his form against the Asia Cup last year, he has amassed over 1500 runs in international cricket. In the just-finished Border-Gavaskar Trophy, he played against Australia and scored an amazing knock of 186 runs, giving him five centuries overall since his return to form.

Kohli, in particular, had a difficult stretch before the Aisa Cup and took a six-week hiatus. The right-hander made an electric recovery in form and scored his first T20I century against Afghanistan in the last league match. In the meantime, Kohli has discussed his bad run and made the startling admission that he was considering retirement after the Asia Cup in 2022.

‘When I go back and play, it might be the last’ – Virat Kohli

In a recent interview with Jio Cinema, he said, “I was willing to accept that when I go back and play, it might be the last month of me playing competitive cricket.” Further speaking with Robin Uthappa, he said, “Anushka’s conversations with me have always been priceless; she tells me the truth & straight forward, if I would have left myself in that phase (before Asia Cup), I would have become an egoistic maniac – she brings me to base level for a normal guy.”

Kohli reiterated the sentiments of millions of Indians when speaking further about legendary batsman Sachin Tendulkar. He stated: “For me, Sachin Paaji has always been an emotion. You speak to anyone, they always looked at him as one of their own, and that happens because there is so much faith everyone has in him, and in fact, when he was playing, we used to feel comfortable.

“He is our source of inspiration and source of comfort, which we all look for. When he used to score runs, life was good. It is like eating home food; you know the feeling we get, the comfort”, he further added. Notably, MS Dhoni‘s squad will be hosted by Virat Kohli’s RCB on Monday as they play CSK in the next game of the IPL 2023.

Here’s how fans reacted: