Birthday boy Virat Kohli: From Chole Bhature to Goan Football Club, five little-known facts about cricket superstar

The Indian batting legend is celebrating his 34th birthday today

Published: Sat 5 Nov 2022, 10:04 AM

Updated: Sat 5 Nov 2022, 10:26 AM

By
Leslie Wilson Jr

Virat Kohli, regarded by many as one of the best batsmen in world cricket, is celebrating his 34th Birthday on Saturday, November 5, a date he shares with Canadian rock star Bryan Adams and legendary ‘Gone with the Wind' actress Vivien Leigh.

Among the highest-earning players in modern-day cricket, Kohli is also the only Indian sportsman to feature in the Forbes list of highest-paid athletes for two years in a row.

However, Kohli, who has been happily married to actress Anushka Sharma for the past four years, has some other accomplishments that are lesser known even to his legion of fans

Let’s take a look at some of them.

Coping with family grief

Despite suffering a personal tragedy when he lost his father, Prem Kohli, on the night of December 18, 2006, a teenage Virat showed incredible spirit by turning up for the last day's play next morning in the Ranji Trophy game for Delhi against Karnataka. Already showing signs of greatness in his debut year, the young Kohli battled through the grief and went on to score 90 runs in Delhi’s total of 308 all out. As a mark of respect, the Karnataka players didn't celebrate when Kohli fell 10 runs short of a century.

GQ citation

In 2012, Kohli was honoured by the men's fashion magazine 'GQ'. When he was named one of the 10 Best Dressed International Men in a list that also included US President Barrack Obama, but unfortunately last on the list. Kohli was given the coveted No 3 slot behind Irish-German actor Michael Fassbender, who is famous for playing the title role in the movie ‘Steve Jobs’, a biopic about the Apple founder. Kohli was 23-year-old at the time and was playing a pivotal role during India’s tour of Australia. Interestingly, Indian businessman Ratan Tata is among the 10 best-dressed businessmen named by GQ.

Love for football

In 2016, Kohli, whose second love is football, purchased a stake in FC Goa who were playing in the franchise-based Indian Super League. He also regularly featured in a celebrity football match to help raise funds for charity. It comes as no surprise to know that Kohli’s favourite football player is none other than Portuguese star Cristiano Ronaldo. In an interview, Kohli said he admired Ronaldo because the Portuguese superstar is like him and had to work very hard to reach the highest level, unlike Lionel Messi, who he called a 'genius'.

A passion for Chole Bhature

Being a Punjabi, it comes as no surprise that Chole Bhature, the Sunday breakfast dish of every Delhiite, is Kohli’s favourite as well. Traditionally served with a glass of cold lassi, Kohli’s go-to restaurant for this mouth-watering delicacies is a restaurant in Gurugram on the Delhi–Haryana border, known as Civil Lines Wala. The Indian batting sensation reportedly has a weakness for the eaterie's special spicy plate of Chole Bhature.

Savvy restaurateur

Like many sportsmen, Kohli also owns a restaurant chain called One8 Commune which has branches in Delhi and Mumbai. A multi-cuisine outlet it serves a whole range of dishes from North Indian to Asian to Continental. You can also find sushi, desserts, shakes, and appetizing beverages on the menu. Its branch in Mumbai offers friendly vegetarian food, light bar snacks, and cocktails. Kohli showed his entrepreneurial skills when the opened One8 in the bungalow of the late singer Kishore Kumar in the posh Juhu area.

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