‘We are not kids anymore’: Kohli on his reconciliation with Gambhir

Last year, Virat Kohli was in the middle of a huge IPL storm when his bust-up with Naveen-ul-Haq and Gautam Gambhir took the world by storm. The Kohli vs Naveen/Gambhir saga emerged as the biggest controversy of IPL 2023 with reactions flowing in from every corner of the world. 

Labelled as arguably the ugliest spat in IPL history since Kohli vs Gambhir Part 1 in 2013, tempers had flown, and the belief was that when the two former India teammates come face-to-face this year, the record would be set straight.

But instead, what transpired was something no one saw coming. When the Royal Challengers Bengaluru hosted Kolkata Knight Riders, a totally unexpected sight unfolded in front of our eyes as Kohli and Gambhir hugged each other, buried the hatchet and moved on, possibly marking the end of one of the most talked-about rivalries in Indian cricket. Gambhir and Kohli go back a long way. From being teammates to opponents in the IPL, and getting in each other's faces, their equation has seen all kinds of ups and downs.

A total of 24 matches are done and dusted this IPL, and yet, this season has remained pretty quiet until now. There haven't been many close finishes, or a big controversy per say barring the Hardik Pandya captaincy row at the Mumbai Indians. Kohli, who himself is steadfast focussed on the game rather than on-field spats, shared his thoughts on the subdued nature of this season and expressed his surprise at the public's reaction following his reconciliation with Gambhir.

"People are very disappointed with my behaviour. I hugged Naveen, and then the other day, Gauti bhai [Gautam Gambhir came and hugged me. Your masala is over so you're booing. We're not kids anymore," he said during an event organised by Asian Paints.

The Kohli vs Gambhir saga had spiralled beyond the IPL last year. During the 2023 Asia Cup, Gambhir apparently flipped a section of the crowd chanting 'Kohli-Kohli', and even though he later revealed that the reason he gestured had nothing to do with Kohli but because he was being shouted inappropriate names at, people weren't convinced. As long as Asia Cup ran in Sri Lanka, wherever Gambhir went, he was teased by incessant Kohli chants.

As Kohli mentioned, Gambhir isn't the only one he has mended fences with. During the 2023 World Cup in India, as the entire nation awaited a face-off between the two during the India vs Afghanistan game in Delhi, Kohli and Naveen pulled off a plot twist, letting bygones be bygones and putting an end to whatever happened that evening in Lucknow's Ekana Stadium.

With his mind away from other on-field shenanigans, Kohli is channelling his entire focus on scoring runs for RCB in the IPL… and succeeding at it. He is the only centurion of IPL 2024 thus far with a 67-ball hundred against Rajasthan Royals and with 316 runs at an average of 105 and strike-rate of 146, Kohli is leading the Orange Cap standings by a fair clip.

He began the IPL with a scratchy 21 against Chennai Super Kings before finding his groove with back-to-back fifties against Punjab Kings and KKR. Kohli scored his 8th IPL century on April 6 but unfortunately his red-hot form isn't enough for RCB as the team is struggling with one win from five matches. On Thursday, Kohli returns to the Wankhede – a venue he has had an instrumental amount of success at with 331 runs – to face the Mumbai Indians.

In all probability, Kohli is making that trip to the West Indies and USA for the T20 World Cup and wants to be in the best shape possible.