Recently, the Indian skipper Virat Kohli was seen clicking pictures with the legendary Australian spinner, Shane Warne. It was a rare sight for the fans, but definitely a memorable one. Earlier this week Kohli was presented the Sportstar Aces Award Sportsman of the Year (Cricket) by Warne, who was in Mumbai as the brand ambassador of the Indian Premier League (IPL) franchise, Rajasthan Royals (RR).
As the two stalwarts met, they had plenty to talk about. From the Australia tour to Test cricket–Kohli and Warne exchanged thoughts on various subjects.
Talking about the Indian skipper, Warne said, “The way he leads the team is very inspiring. His love for Test cricket is something near to my heart. I love all forms of the game but Test cricket is very important because of its history and tradition. The way Virat inspires people around the world is fantastic and I can’t think anyone else better than (him) as the sportsman of the year. He has got a lot of in-built skill and talent which is good competition and the will to complete the job. I congratulate him for this award and wish him more success.”
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As Warne spoke highly of Kohli, the later also made it clear that it was a dream come true for him to receive the award from his childhood hero. The India skipper was also excited to be featured on the cover pages of the Sportstar magazine.
Virat elaborated, “Sportstar for me used to be the posters (on the center spread). I used to buy those magazines and would look forward to the posters. Getting this award and being on the magazine’s cover now is like a childhood memory revived but the difference being I am on the cover now. To receive it from (Warne), one of my heroes growing up is a dream come true.”
The India captain, who had a fantastic season last year–both as a batsman and a captain–also took out a center spread poster of MS Dhoni, published in one of the issues of the magazine. Recollecting some memories, Kohli said, he is going to take the poster home and hand over to Dhoni.
On Friday, Warne took to his social media handles to congratulate Kohli. His Instagram post read: “It was an absolute pleasure to present the Sportstar sportsman of the Year award a few days ago to the Indian skipper @virat.kohli. Congratulations buddy, keep up the great work & keep inspiring.”
Minutes after Warne posts, fans across the globe congratulated Kohli on the award on social media.
