It was an internet-breaking gesture from Virat Kohli after Smriti Mandhana-led Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) ended the franchise's long wait for a title with a trophy haul in the 2024 Women's Premier League (WPL) final. RCB beat Delhi Capitals by eight wickets at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi to not only claim their maiden WPL title, but also end RCB's 16 years of trophy drought.
Moments after the big win, where the likes of Mandhana, Sophie Devine and Ellyse Perry orchestrated the successful chase of 114, Kohli made a video call to the RCB women's team captain to congratulate, a gesture that was hailed on social media. The rest of the team members immediately joined her as Kohli was seen dancing during the video call. It was then that Perry gave an epic Kohli reaction as she was heard saying: “V for Virat!”
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RCB made three other finals in the Indian Premier League (IPL) - 2009, 2011 and 2016. Kohli was part of all three squads and, in fact, was the captain of the 2016 side. Hence, he was elated at the achievement as he later shared an Instagram story on the WPL title win, captioning it, "Superwomen."
Virat Kohli begins preparations for IPL 2024
{{/usCountry}}RCB made three other finals in the Indian Premier League (IPL) - 2009, 2011 and 2016. Kohli was part of all three squads and, in fact, was the captain of the 2016 side. Hence, he was elated at the achievement as he later shared an Instagram story on the WPL title win, captioning it, "Superwomen."
Virat Kohli begins preparations for IPL 2024
{{/usCountry}}Kohli has joined the RCB men's side to gear up for the IPL 2024 season. The former India captain was last seen in action during the home T20I series against Afghanistan. He later missed the entire five-match Test series against England owing to the birth of his second child, a baby boy, named Akaay.
The 17th season of the IPL will be a crucial tournament for Kohli amid reports circulating that he might be dropped from the Indian squad for the T20 World Cup in June, owing to his failure to meet the demands of the format, indicating his low strike rate. While there has been no official statement on the rumour, Kohli will be eager to shrug off the talk and take IPL 2024 as a platform to prepare for the ICC event.
RCB will play the season opener on March 22 at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai against home team and defending champions Chennai Super Kings.