The Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Chennai Super Kings (CSK) renew their rivalry in the Indian Premier League (IPL) at the Chepauk Stadium on Friday. Ahead of that, however, there was a glimpse of how franchise loyalties blur when it comes to some players, among whom is RCB icon Virat Kohli. The franchise posted a video on its X handle of Kohli signing autographs and clicking selfies with the crowd that had gathered at the Chepauk during RCB's practice.
Most fans were wearing the yellow of CSK and some had the blue of India on. And yet, they all seem visibly thrilled at the prospect of getting a moment with Kohli, which isn't much of a surprise. During the 2023 season being rumoured to be MS Dhoni's last in the IPL, all grounds in the country could be seen dressed in yellow regardless of franchise affiliation whenever CSK was in town.
Here is the video that the franchise posted on X:
Kohli is widely rated as one of the greatest batters of all time and holds the record for most centuries in ODI cricket. Naturally, fans across the country tend to be just thrilled to watch him bat, even if it is for RCB against the franchise they support.
{{/usCountry}}Kohli is widely rated as one of the greatest batters of all time and holds the record for most centuries in ODI cricket. Naturally, fans across the country tend to be just thrilled to watch him bat, even if it is for RCB against the franchise they support.
{{/usCountry}}This is Kohli's first IPL after retiring from T20Is. He called time on his career after the 2024 T20 World Cup, in which he put up a player-of-the-match performance to power India to their first ICC title in 11 years. Kohli then went through a rather shocking downturn in form during India's rather disastrous 2024/25 Test season but showed that his ODI form remained intact as he played a key role in India winning the 2025 Champions Trophy.
Kohli has also made a strong start to this season's IPL, leading RCB to victory in their opening match against Kolkata Knight Riders at the Eden Gardens with an unbeaten 59 off 36 balls. KKR were limited to a score of 174/8 after looking capable of scoring well over 220 at one stage. Kohli shared an explosive 95-run opening stand with Phil Salt, who smashed 56 in 31 balls, which pretty much knocked the wind out of KKR's sails.