Kohli receives Khel Ratna Award
New Delhi, 25 September: Indian cricket captain Virat Kohli seems to have his bum in the butter, continuously, really. The guy seems to be capable of doing nothing wrong literally. When it comes to form, he is on the seventh sky. He is hot property on social media – except one slip when his wife behaved like a self-appointed cleanliness ambassador for India and told him to film her work – lecturing someone else through the car window on cleanliness, but that’s a story for another time.
It was the sporting hero in Virat Kohli this time being decorated with the highest sporting award of India, and was presented with the Rajiv Gandhi Khel Ratna Award, by President of India Ram Nath Kovind.
Kohli was cheered on from the audience by his family including wife actress Anushka Sharma, mother Saroj Kohli and brother Vikas Kohli. Now decorated with Khle Ratna, he is only the third Indian cricketer after Sachin Tendulkar and Mahendra Singh Dhoni to get the honour. It is worth mentioning that he had been nominated both in 2016 and 2017 but missed out.
Kohli had taken a break from cricket while the Indian cricket team led by Rohit Sharma lifted their 7th Asia Cup 2018 in Dubai. Kohli, as per the ICC rankings is the world’s No.1 Test batsman and has been in stupendous form. His glorious record comprises of 6147 runs in 71 Tests with 23 centuries and 9779 runs in 211 ODIs, including 35 tons.
Kohli received the Arjuna award in 2013 and the Padma Shri last year.
Weightlifter Mirabai Chanu was also presented with the Khel Ratna award in a glittering ceremony at the Rashtrapati Bhavan.
- – Vir Rajendra