How Virat Kohli started a cricket obsession

In India cricket is every man’s second religion. The players? They are the gods, the role models, the inspiration, the dose of adrenaline that every man yearns for.

Cricket is an entire event. In the congested residential streets one TV would be surrounded by an entire neighbourhood. Children with mithai (sweets) would have their faces painted with the Indian tricolour as they waved their flags.

Even the adults would keep an incognito tab pinned to their browsers at their workplaces. At every lunch table there would be a conversation about how Virat Kohli should have played dheere se (slowly) or how MS Dhoni needs to be replaced. Every Indian is undoubtedly an excellent analyser of the game courtesy to their daily commitment to the sport.

This brings me to the fact that parents in India are often passionate about cricket themselves, and so are their children. But for me cricket was a bit different.

Fixed hai (it is fixed) was what my father would say every time India lost a game. The last time he said this was obviously the Pakistan Champions Trophy final game. It seems like he is unwilling to give any credit to the opposition. Time waste hai pad le (it’s a waste of time, go and study).

In this discouraging environment cricket made a delayed entry into my existence. It may have slipped under the radar had it not been for Virat Kohli.

During the first year I was introduced to cricket the Indian team was often portrayed as a feeble and fragile team. Jam rahe hain (they are getting set) was what everyone said when the openers took their jolly time to trouble the scorers. Cricket was boring. I have to admit it. But enter Kohli.

Verbal, direct and shameless, Kohli was a different contest altogether. The first time I saw Kohli was probably when he was fly-kissing Mitchell Johnson after getting hit by a bouncer. I thought, “Wow! Now that’s some courage for a 25-odd-year-old”.

What was different was how readily he got verbal, something that the Indian batsman before his generation seemed to be horrible at. Sachin Tendulkar they say was a great player, but I sometimes feel alienated because I do not have the same feelings at all. Kohli was the one who was my reason to sit in front of the TV with mithai. Kohli was the reason I started following cricket, and today I celebrate every century of his on my laptop (in incognito of course).

Kohli is the role model. Kohli is the adrenaline rush. From his work ethic to his ruthlessness, Kohli inspired me. Kohli brought me into cricket, and I thank him for it. I don’t care how many times I have to secretly watch my cricket in incognito or keep sliding desktops; I will keep watching Kohli. I don’t think I need mithai, though – something flame would be more appropriate.