Former India captain MS Dhoni has spoken about his relationship with star batter Virat Kohli. While their camaraderie on the field is known to all, Dhoni is not great on keeping touch with people off the field. His ongoing and former teammates have complained about not being able to reach Dhoni at times when he is not playing cricket. But with Kohli, he seems to have a special bond with him. For those not in the know, Dhoni texted Kohli after Kohli had decided to step down as captain of India’s test team in January 2022, right after the tour of South Africa.
Kohli had, during an interaction, revealed that Dhoni was the only one who reached out to him in his difficult moments.
“Let me tell you one thing: when I left Test captaincy, I got a message from only one person, with whom I had played previously; that was MS Dhoni. Many people have my number. In TV, people give lots of suggestions; people have a lot to say. But none of the people who had my number bothered to send me a message,” Kohli had said.
Dhoni, however, has now commented on his special gesture he made for Kohli, admitting that he is “not great” in keeping touch with people. In a viral video, Dhoni has been asked by a fan about his relationship with Kohli during an event.
“It’s deja vu. I was asked a similar question very recently; you will see the answer during the IPL. I’m not great when it comes to being in touch with people, but yeah, certain times when someone needs you, you drop a message,” Dhoni stated in the video.
While in an interview in 2022, Kohli opened up on his struggles and the text he received from Dhoni during those tough times.
“That respect [with Dhoni], that connection you have with someone, when it is genuine, it shows like this, because there is no insecurity with either of us. He does not require anything from me, nor do I from him.” There isn’t any insecurity present. What I can say is, `If I wish to say something to somebody, I get connected to that individual alone if I want to help.’
“I mean, giving suggestions in public arena holds no merit for me. If it’s for my improvement, come and talk to me in person. Say something like: I actually want you to do well. I live life very honestly. I am able to see through this. I am not downplaying this; I am just saying that. When you play for that long and do so with honesty, the only one who looks out for you is the God Almighty. Until I can continue playing, and provided I deserve to be a player, I will keep playing like this,” he had said.