Ishant Sharma Recalls How Virat Kohli Faced Bowlers At U17 Trials

Ishant Sharma has seen Virat Kohli’s remarkable rise in cricket from very close quarters. The India stars were mates even before they made it big in the game. Virat Kohli’s rise in the game has been truly remarkable and while it might have surprised many, Ishant Sharma is not one of them.

No batsman has performed as consistently as Virat Kohli in all the three formats in the last few years. When it comes to stats across formats, Virat Kohli is heads and shoulders above his contemporaries. At just 31, Kohli has hit a staggering 70 centuries and 104 half-centuries in international cricket. With 43 tons to his name, he is second in the list of most centuries in ODIs. He is the only player in the world with average of more than 50 in all the three formats of the game.

But while Virat Kohli is arguably the best in the world right now, not many would have predicted this in his early years in international cricket. While the India skipper showed promise, he did not really take international cricket by storm. But Ishant Sharma has revealed his teammate was an exceptional talent right from his early days.

The right-arm pacer has recalled how Virat Kohli was not scared of facing any bowler while he was playing U17 cricket. He revealed that even at that age, Kohli was facing all sorts of bowlers without helmet. Ishant Sharma also said the star batsman is a fun-loving person on and off the field and they keep in touch with each other even during off seasons.

“I had first met him during the trial for an U17 team. There itself he was batting with cap at nets and even in the match against all kind of bowlers. Pacers, spinners he did not have any issue facing them. Some of the boys were bowling really fast but he did not have any fear,” said Ishant Sharma in a video shared by his IPL team Delhi Capitals.

“We know each other from the U17 days and we end up talking to each other a lot. He always loves to have fun around teammates. It has not changed at all even after he became the captain. We still share a lot of jokes and laughter and even when I am not in the team we have kept in touch with each other, and it is a special kind of bonding,” said the 31-year-old Ishant, who has played 97 Tests and picked up 297 wickets.

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