'We didn't approach him. He came to us himself... that was a big thing': Ex-UAE captain on Kohli's heartwarming gesture
The former UAE captain spoke about his chat with Virat Kohli during the 2015 World Cup, where an MS Dhoni-led Indian team had taken on the UAE side in the group stages.
The UAE cricket team has made select appearances at the Asia Cup and the ODI World Cup; they qualified for the marquee global tournament on two occasions (1996 and 2015), while making their last Asia Cup appearance in 2016 where they finished fifth. During both, the 2015 World Cup and the continental tournament a year later, UAE locked horns against India in the group stages; while the Indian team did secure relatively cruising wins in both games, it provided invaluable exposure to the UAE players at the time.

Former UAE captain Rohan Mustafa, who is currently with the Desert Vipers at the DP World ILT20, spoke in detail about the interactions he had with India's Virat Kohli during the clash in 2015, and revealed a heartwarming gesture from the India batting great at the time. Kohli was then the vice-captain of the Indian limited-overs team with MS Dhoni leading the side.
Mustafa stated that Kohli was his “favourite player” and recalled the moment during an interaction with Hindustan Times after a training session with the Desert Vipers at the ICC Academy.
“I played against them in 2015 World Cup as well. (MS) Dhoni was the captain at the time. Virat was our favourite player. I still remember we were sitting for breakfast, Virat came to us and he started chatting with us. We asked him to sit with us and he gave us five minutes,” Mustafa remembered.
“We didn't approach him, he came to us himself which was a very big thing for us. Virat Kohli was at the top in every format of the game at the time,” said the former UAE captain further.
Talking about the chat, Mustafa revealed Kohli provided the UAE players with important tips regarding the game. “He told us a lot of things about the game. He asked us to play with confidence and be brave. So, that has helped us a lot,” said the UAE star.
Mustafa opens for the Desert Vipers at the ILT20 and made important contributions for the side in the opening role, where he partnered Alex Hales. The Vipers team management will once again be pinning hopes on the local UAE star to provide the side with an excellent start in the all-important final, that takes place on Sunday night against Gulf Giants.
