Former Indian player and currently employed by the Lucknow Super Giants in the IPL, Amit Mishra was a huge talking point across the cricketing fraternity in India since his comments on talismanic batsman Virat Kohli.
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Mishra had stated a change in Virat’s attitude after becoming skipper of the Indian team after MS Dhoni decided to step down. The controversial statement spread like wildfire on social media platforms with Kohli fans taking the matter into their own hands by bashing and trolling Mishra left, right and centre.
Mishra’s case has further weakened as another former Indian spinner, Piyush Chawla has come forward to express his thoughts on the former India skipper. Chawla’s statements on Kohli show a stark contrast from that of Mishra's.
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What did Piyush Chawla say about Virat Kohli
Chawla was very clear about his thoughts on Kohli while talking on the ‘2 Sloggers’ podcast. According to the spinner, he never noticed any kind of behavioural changes in Kohli despite reaching the pinnacle of Indian cricket. Chawla said that he had a very pleasant experience with the batter at both the junior as well as senior levels.
Irrespective of whatever amount of cricket I have played, how much I know him, I have always had a very good experience. He played junior cricket together, then in the IPL and for India together. Everyone has their own mindset. Even today we meet very nicely.
Chawla further revealed a story between the two during last year’s Asia Cup which India had won by defeating Sri Lanka in the final. Chawla was present for the tournament as a commentator. During a match, the 35-year-old was wandering around during the innings break, and that’s when Kohli approached the spinner to share a moment.
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Kohli funnily asked Chawla out for a snack break, telling him to order something for both of them since both are proper foodies.
In fact, when Kohli was playing in the Asia Cup, I was there was commentary. I was near the boundary just after the innings break. He came and said PC yaar, chal kuch achha sa order karein (PC, let's order something nice). We both are very fond of food. So even today we speak the same way as we did 10-15 years ago.
However, Chawla wasn’t completely critical of Mishra, stating that he respected Mishra as his senior in the team. He further stated that he watched Mishra’s podcast wherein he had remarked, stating he found the show to be amazing. Chawla said that he had learnt a lot from the veteran spinner.
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