The Indian cricket team made its mark on American soil by starring in the ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup. Fans across the globe landed in America to watch a few superstars of the game, which included Virat Kohli, arguably the Michael Jordan of cricket. The fan following of this Indian batsman is quite bizarre. He has a total of 269 million followers on Instagram and has a crowd-pulling capacity, similar to that of the Chicago Bulls icon. Surprisingly, Kohli has been an ardent fan of the NBA during his childhood, and a fan of both MJ and Kobe Bryant. But would he place Jordan on top of the Black Mamba? Let’s see. 

Kohli, just like MJ, has the clutch genes when it comes to cricket. This is the first time he stepped foot in America to play international cricket. Ahead of his 6th T20 World Cup, Kohli sat down to speak about the influence of Jordan on him. The 35-year-old shared, “I guess there have been many before and after. I used to love watching Kobe Bryant play. I guess that the time I saw Michael Jordan play, I clearly remember, there used to be the early morning basketball games, that used to be aired on ESPN.”

Kohli revealed that he took notes from Jordan before he left for his cricket practice in the early morning. The 2011 World champion shared, “Just watching him play, it was just a real natural connect, with his body language, with the way he moved on the court. Just his personality and you could see in his face, the intensity and the will to win. And I just immediately connected to that.” At this point in his career, Kohli has come to a place where he can relate to the pressure players like MJ and Kobe faced.

Although Kobe Bryant is someone he loved watching, Kohli wants to stay loyal to Michael Jordan. Oh, and also, it looks like the Indian cricketer was here to accomplish another dream of his, which involves the 6x champion. 

Kohli shares how he would react if he met Michael Jordan 

Just like millions in this world, Kohli is waiting for his chance to meet the NBA icon. The Indian sensation is just like us, isn’t he? But what would Kohli do if he saw Jordan all of a sudden? The 35-year-old revealed that it would take him back to his childhood, and thus he “would go crazy“. 

“You know at any point in time, I’d be a fanboy and I would just run up to him to ask for an autograph, not necessarily take pictures without asking. That’s the school I’ve grown up in. So yeah, but I would be absolutely acting like a small boy…If I see him.”

Sadly, Kohli’s time in America has come to an end. The remaining games of the World Cup will happen in the West Indies. However, Kohli’s journey to the finals is not over yet. He has reached the Semi-Finals now, and India is yet to lose a game this World Cup. Let’s see if Kohli can lift his first T20 World Cup trophy!

What do you think about the cricketer’s thoughts? Let us know in the comments below.

Stay tuned for more such updates, and to follow what Shaq’s ex-agent, Leonard Armato, has to say about the infamous Shaq-Kobe feud, Caitlin Clark’s Olympic snub, and more, watch this video: