Only MS Dhoni messaged me after I quit Test captaincy: Virat Kohli

After an extended period of poor form, it looks like Virat Kohli is finally getting his lost touch back. The Indian batting stalwart has smashed back-to-back fifties in the last two Asia Cup matches against Hong Kong and Pakistan. His 60(44) against Pakistan in particular was a quality knock. While things are getting better for him now, Kohli went on to say that he didn’t find support from anybody except MS Dhoni during his bad phase.

“I’ll tell you one thing. When I quit Test captaincy, only one person who I played with messaged me. That is MS Dhoni. A lot of people have my number. People give suggestions on TV. People have a lot to say. But all those who had my number didn’t message,” Kohli said after the match against Pakistan on Sunday.

He went on to reveal thar there is a sense of security between him and Dhoni, and that stood out during this time, “When you have respect for someone and that’s genuine, then it looks like that because there is a sense of security on both sides. Neither does he need anything from me nor do I need anything from him. I was never insecure of him neither was he.”

Kohli is of the opinion that if someone genuinely wants to help him, they can reach out to him personally as well rather than dishing out suggestions in the public. That, according to him, matters very little. He has learnt to see through people and wants to live his life with honesty. He thinks that he will keep playing for India as long as he is worthy of playing.

India lost despite Kohli’s superb knock on Sunday. Pakistan chased down the target of 182, riding on a match-winning all-round performance from Mohammad Nawaz, who registered figures of 1/25 in four overs and also went on to smash 42(20) to keep Pakistan in the game.

The loss against Pakistan has hurt India bad. They now need to win both of their remaining Super 4 matches against Sri Lanka and Afghanistan, and maintain a good net run rate along with that, to book their berth in the final.