New Delhi: Virat Kohli, one of the world's most celebrated cricketers, displayed his sportsmanship during the World Cup 2023 match between India and Afghanistan on October 11th at the Arun Jaitley Stadium in New Delhi.
Chants of "Kohli, Kohli" went up when Afghan pacer Naveen-ul-Haq was going about his fielding drills.
The former Indian captain, known for his aggressive style on the field, made an appeal to the home crowd, asking them not to mock Naveen.
The tension escalated when the two players exchanged heated words while Naveen was at the crease.
This was the first meeting of both players since the infamous on-field tussle between Kohli and Naveen during the IPL 2023 match between Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) and Lucknow Super Giants (LSG).
During the match, Kohli appeared to have said something to Naveen, the LSG batter. The chatter from Kohli continued with non-striker Amit Mishra making futile attempts to calm the India legend down.
Naveen did not respond to Kohli's sledges on the ground but after the match was finished, he shook the RCB player's hand rather aggressively. That was not the end of it. When LSG captain KL Rahul tried to broker peace, Naveen walked away, refusing to talk to Kohli.
The altercation back then was the subject of viral videos, and memes.
Kohli was also involved in an animated chat with Kyle Mayers and later with LSG mentor Gautam Gambhir.
Despite their past differences, Kohli stood up for Naveen, waving to the crowd not to boo Naveen. Kohli, who has been nicknamed "The King" and "Captain Fearless" by his fans, is renowned for his dominant play and incredible captaincy.
During the break, both Naveen and Kohli were seen exchanging pleasantries, holding arms and patting on the back. Naveen initiated it, and both shared a smile.
After the game, when Naveen was asked about Kohli and the moment they shared, he said, “He is a nice guy, a good player and we shook hands. It’s always in the ground, it was nothing outside the ground. People make it big. They need that stuff for their followers. He said we are done with that and I said yes we are done with it. We shook hands and hugged,”, as quoted by The Indian Express.