“He thinks he is Cristiano Ronaldo, but he is not” - Yuvraj Singh’s cheeky comment on Virat Kohli’s football skills
Former India all-rounder Yuvraj Singh recently took a light-hearted dig at Virat Kohli over the latter’s football skills.
While Kohli is widely regarded as one of the greatest batters of the modern era, he also enjoys his football. Yuvraj likes the sport as well, and the two have often been spotted playing friendly football games.
In a recent interaction on the TRS podcast, Yuvraj shared his candid views on Kohli’s football talent, albeit in a tongue-in-cheek manner.
“Meri aur Virat ki bahut badi ladai hui hai football mein, meri [Ashish] Nehra ke saath bahut badi ladai hui hai football mein, Viru [Sehwag] ke saath, toh vo ho jaata hai. [Me and Virat have fought during football. I have also had fights with Nehra and Sehwag]," he said.
“Usko (Virat Kohli) lagta hai vo bahut faadu footballer hai. Hai skilll, par mere andar usse jyada hai. Vo faadu batsman hai, footballer mai better hoon. He thinks he is Cristiano Ronaldo, but he is not. In his cricket, he is Cristiano Ronaldo. [Kohli thinks he is a very good footballer. He has skills, but I am better than him in football],” Yuvraj added.
Kohli and Yuvraj were part of the team that won the 2011 ODI World Cup at home. While the former made some significant contributions with the willow, the latter was adjudged the Player of the Tournament for scoring 362 runs and claiming 15 wickets.
Yuvraj Singh hails Virat Kohli for promoting fitness culture in Indian team
During the same podcast, Yuvraj also praised Kohli for giving importance to fitness during his tenure as Indian captain. The 41-year-old commented:
“We all wanted to become a fit team but when Kohli became the captain there was a big difference. He set a benchmark.”
Asked about his current equation with the batting superstar, the former cricketer candidly admitted that the two don’t interact a lot since Kohli is a busy person.
“I don’t disturb him because he is busy. We knew the young Virat Kohli as Cheeku. Today’s Cheeku is Virat Kohli, so there is a big difference,” Yuvraj said.
Kohli is currently representing India in the 2023 ODI World Cup at home. He is the second-leading run-getter in the competition, having scored 543 runs in eight innings at an average of 108.60 and a strike rate of 88.29.