I Thought He Was A Bit Cocky When He Was A Youngster - AB de Villiers Reveals First Impression Of Virat Kohli
Published - 05 Feb 2022, 01:28 PM
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AB de Villiers and Virat Kohli are excellent friends but in the early stages of their careers, they barely had a chat even though they passed each other quite a few times.
In an RCB podcast, de Villiers opened up on his first impression of Kohli, who was known to be quite arrogant and aggressive in his early days. Kohli had already played for more than three years when de Villiers joined RCB in 2011.
“We ran into each other a few times before we properly met. I knew about him, he knew about me. I said it a few times that I thought he was a bit cocky when he was a youngster, so that was my initial impression.
“Even though I could see that he has got respect and the basics are in place, I felt like he has got a bit of swagger going in.”
“So, I didn’t hold it against him because you need it at that point of age. We had a really short discussion, I didn’t give him any compliments or anything like that. But, I remember clearly at Wanderers when I got picked up by RCB, and it was a nice discussion of looking forward to playing together,” de Villiers revealed on the RCB podcast.
“Once I got to Bangalore, the connection just kicked off straight away” – AB de Villiers
Once they paired up off the field, their partnership on the field began flourishing. The duo started breaking records together and soon became the most loved pair in the IPL.
“Once I got to Bangalore, the connection just kicked off straight away. Our proper friendship started when I started playing for RCB in 2011. That’s probably when we started becoming good friends.
“I am kind of a guy where I don’t really keep in touch but for some reason with Virat, it just happens, so we stay in touch. It’s easy as he is on telly the whole time when I am at home.”
“We both have a lot of basics in common. The way we play the game is quite similar. He is a fighter and I sort of relate to the way he plays the game and another fighter in the team, would have been great,” De Villiers added.
De Villiers retired after the IPL 2021 season but has expressed his desire to be involved in RCB’s management.
