New Delhi, Nov 5: India captain Virat Kohli is celebrating his 31st birthday on Tuesday (November 5). The Delhi cricketer, who took a break from the ongoing T20I series against Bangladesh, was greeted by the cricketing fraternity on his special day.
Earlier in the day, Kohli shared an image told his 15-year-old self to shower his late dad with lots of love, giving his warm hugs precedence over his refusal to buy the dreamy-eyed son a pair of shoes.
Virat Kohli 31st birthday: India captain celebrates his birthday with wife Anushka Sharma in Bhutan
Kohli also tells the same West Delhi boy to savour those "parathas", for he knows they will become "quite a luxury" in the years to come. And luxury they did become. These were among a plethora of thoughts that crossed his mind.
Virat Kohli birthday: King Kohli pens an emotional letter to his 15-year-old self as he turns 31
His father Prem Kohli was 54 when he died following a stroke, and his son, who would one day become the world's best batsman, was 18. It is well documented that a day after performing the last rites, Kohli turned up to score 90 odd runs and save his state team Delhi in a Ranji Trophy game.
Now an incredibly successful cricketer, ranked No.1 in both Tests and ODIs, Kohli, again going back in time, knows that he will have to face failures at some point.
The cricketing fraternity took to their social media handles to greet the Indian batting mainstay.
Here's who said what:
BCCI:
As #TeamIndia Captain @imVkohli turns 31, we take a look back at his maiden ODI hundred and where it all started for the Run Machine. #HappyBirthdayVirat 🎂💐💐 pic.twitter.com/6vNY1U4p8H
— BCCI (@BCCI) November 4, 2019
ICC:
❇️ Fastest to 20,000 international runs
— ICC (@ICC) November 5, 2019
❇️ Most double hundreds as Test captain
❇️ First to clean sweep ICC awards
Happy Birthday to player extraordinaire, @imVkohli 🎂 pic.twitter.com/SyoF0mvNmC
Sachin Tendulkar:
Wishing you a very happy birthday Virat! Continue scoring runs and leading India with the same passion! All the best. pic.twitter.com/DhExlercwC
— Sachin Tendulkar (@sachin_rt) November 5, 2019
Virender Sehwag:
May the ball always appear as big as this and may your batting always be like a F5 button, refresh everyone who is blessed to see it. Badalon ki tarah chaaye raho, hamesha khush raho @imVkohli #HappyBirthdayViratKohli pic.twitter.com/32sydYLeRg
— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) November 5, 2019
Rohit Sharma:
Happy birthday @imVkohli here’s wishing you a great year. God bless
— Rohit Sharma (@ImRo45) November 5, 2019
Shikhar Dhawan:
Many many happy returns of the day @imVkohli. Keep shining brother. 🤗 pic.twitter.com/3W12XuwmcU
— Shikhar Dhawan (@SDhawan25) November 5, 2019
Yuvraj Singh:
Yeh bhi din they ! Aur ek aaj ka din hai ! Jahan bhi ho khush raho , God bless you always ! Happy birthday @imVkohli pic.twitter.com/kIuqtCwXIl
— yuvraj singh (@YUVSTRONG12) November 5, 2019
Ajinkya Rahane:
Wishing a very happy birthday to @imVkohli. Best wishes and may you have some wonderful years ahead! pic.twitter.com/0T6QrZD4de
— Ajinkya Rahane (@ajinkyarahane88) November 5, 2019
Suresh Raina:
Happy birthday, brother @imVkohli More runs, more power & more glory to you on your special day. Keep doing what you do. Best wishes, always! 😎👍🏻 pic.twitter.com/IjdNqwjNW8
— Suresh Raina🇮🇳 (@ImRaina) November 5, 2019
Aakash Chopra:
He's done superhuman things on the field and now he is a superhero off it - what a way to celebrate your birthday, @imVkohli!#HappyBirthdaySuperV - can't wait to see what's in store as the show premieres today at 3:30 PM on the Star Network
— Aakash Chopra (@cricketaakash) November 5, 2019
R Ashwin:
Many more happy returns of the day @imVkohli , god bless and look forward to the super V.
— Ashwin Ravichandran (@ashwinravi99) November 5, 2019
VVS Laxman:
Many more happy returns of the day dear @imVkohli . Wishing you a great year full of happiness and sunshine! May you continue to set new benchmarks and experience ever more love and joy #HappyBirthdayViratKohli pic.twitter.com/KYg3CGHQei
— VVS Laxman (@VVSLaxman281) November 5, 2019
Mohammad Kaif:
In 2012, when I played for RCB , watched Barcelona play on his laptop together. I thought he had something special about him but never knew he was going to become an absolute legend @imVkohli #HappyBirthdayViratKohli pic.twitter.com/baoFsOc5ev
— Mohammad Kaif (@MohammadKaif) November 5, 2019
Harbhajan Singh:
Happy birthday mere chotte veer @imVkohli modern generations batting master,I wish you all the success on and off the field.. May waheguru continue to bless you with everything..stay happy and healthy.. #HappyBirthdayVirat ❤️❤️ pic.twitter.com/VQxlESr9NV
— Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) November 5, 2019
Cheteshwar Pujara:
Many many happy returns of the day @imVkohli brother. Hope you have a year full of happiness, fun and cheer. 🤗 pic.twitter.com/0I776n5l6R
— cheteshwar pujara (@cheteshwar1) November 5, 2019
Kuldeep Yadav:
Happy birthday @imVkohli bhai 🤗
— Kuldeep yadav (@imkuldeep18) November 5, 2019
Your dedication and commitment towards the game is a great example for us. Best wishes skipper 🙌🏻⭐️ pic.twitter.com/lM5SZnI19f
Robin Uthappa:
Wishing you nothing but the best @imVkohli , here’s to a fantastic year ahead for you. May everything you have wished for and more come your way. Happy birthday 🥳
— Robin Aiyuda Uthappa (@robbieuthappa) November 5, 2019
RCB:
#31Years31Records#HappyBirthdayViratKohli #PlayBold (1/31) pic.twitter.com/fNdvZuhQ8P
— Royal Challengers (@RCBTweets) November 5, 2019
AB de Villiers:
Birthday wishes from friends are the real icing on the cake.
— Royal Challengers (@RCBTweets) November 5, 2019
Happy Birthday @imVkohli
Here are some wishes for you from the RCB family. #PlayBold #HappyBirthdayVirat pic.twitter.com/hFE6RiRBCS