Former India and Royal Challengers Bangalore teammate Dinesh Karthik has praised Virat Kohli's ability to stay grounded despite achieving so much, saying it is the reason for the cult-like following the former India and RCB skipper has developed over the years. Speaking on the RCB Podcast Season 2, Karthik described Kohli as an emotional, caring, and reactive person who has achieved so much on and off the field that it makes him a champion in all walks of life.
Karthik, who has seen Kohli up close while sharing the dressing room with him for Team India and RCB, said that Kohli's consistency and mastery over the game are unparalleled. "His dominance for about close to a decade is unparalleled. We have to understand that there are three different formats, and playing three different formats itself is difficult, and then there he is averaging 50 in all of them, travelling abroad and scoring as well," he said.
Karthik also spoke about the man behind the imposing Kohli persona. "I have a nice equation with Kohli. I think I really like him as a person. The way he's able to handle the situation right now, a lot of credit to him for that, and he still has a smile on his face. The love and affection he's getting from the world, he deserves it, and it is good to see him in good spirits. You know, he is a very, very emotional, caring, and reactive person," said the RCB batter.
Karthik also gave an insight into his own contented state of mind, which helped him view the achievements of Kohli and other contemporaries like MS Dhoni with positivity. "If I was a very disgruntled cricketer, then I think it would feel very different. In many ways, I'm content. I think as a person that makes me look at things very differently," he said.
Finally, Karthik revealed that his biggest accolade as a commentator came from the former Indian team captain, MS Dhoni. "And my biggest accolade came from the person that I least expected from - MS Dhoni. He called me and said: 'I really enjoyed the commentary. Very, very good. Well done.' I was like, Wow, thank you so much. So, that is big, you know, obviously, he watches a lot of this sport. And so and to hear him say that was really good. And I was happy that you enjoyed my commentary," said Karthik.