The International Cricket Council's (ICC) digital media team is one of the active ones. Their creative ways of using match videos, out-of-the-box ideas for Instagram reels and attractive info-graphics are loved by cricket fans across the globe and during a World Cup, their social media pages become vibrant like never before. But when it comes to Indian cricket fans, there is always a lot at stake. ICC found out the hard way after Indian fans trolled one of their recent Instagram reels featuring the Men in Blue.
ICC posted a reel on Tuesday on its and T20 World Cup's Instagram handles that featured India captain Rohit Sharma, vice captain KL Rahul, new star Suryakumar Yadav, and premier leg-spinner Yuzvendra Chahal. The video in which Rohit, Rahul, Suryakumar and Chahal were seen putting their hand on the chest, was captioned: "Are you ready for India?".
It was a positive video, perhaps to encourage the fans to get behind their team before the Super 12 stage of the World Cup begins but ICC, in return, were criticised. The reason was Virat Kohli's absence from the video. Not seeing the former India captain representing India in the ICC video, did not go down well with the fans.
Here's how the fans reacted to ICC's Instagram minus Virat Kohli
"Where is the KING?" wrote a fan while another wrote, "Without Virat no India." Another fan wrote: "Without Virat This Is Incomplete."
{{/usCountry}}"Where is the KING?" wrote a fan while another wrote, "Without Virat no India." Another fan wrote: "Without Virat This Is Incomplete."
{{/usCountry}}Kohli was in red-hot form in India's first T20 World Cup warm-up match against Australia in Brisbane. It was because of his magnificent fielding that India were able to win the match by six runs. Kohli who scored 19, orchestrated a run out of Tim David with a direct hit in the 19th over and then took a one-handed stunner to dismiss Pat Cummins in the last over of the match.
The former India captain will once again be in action in the second warm-up match against New Zealand on Wednesday at the same venue. Needless to say, Virat Kohli will be one of India's main hopes when they start their T20 World Cup campaign in the Super 12 stage against Pakistan on October 23 at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.