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Former cricketer-turned-commentator Sanjay Manjrekar gave his take on the "special gesture" by fans who dressed in white to pay tribute to India batting maestro Virat Kohli's illustrious Test career during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 fixture between Royal Challengers Bengaluru and Kolkata Knight Riders.
The highly anticipated fixture at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on Saturday, which marked the resumption of the 18th season of the cash-rich league, was washed away by persistent rain in Bengaluru. Even though the coin wasn't spun, and a single delivery wasn't bowled, fans stayed in numbers with hopes of witnessing Virat's magic for the first time since he announced his retirement from the format on Monday. It started with a simple social media post urging fans to wear white Kohli shirts to pay tribute to the Indian stalwart's stellar career. The stands were covered in reds, but there was enough white in between, indicating fans had come in to tribute Virat's 14-year-long journey in the red-ball format. "The love that the fans have for Virat Kohli, it's something special. This was an IPL night match, and fans came dressed in whites to commemorate a moment in Indian cricket history. That's a beautiful gesture," Manjrekar said on JioHotstar. During Virat's tenure as Test skipper, which lasted from 2014 to 2022, he infused the team's fitness and aggression culture. He transformed India into a powerhouse during a phase when the format was losing its mojo. "For five years, he made Test cricket watchable and more popular. We often say no player is bigger than the game, but when Test cricket was struggling to engage fans, Virat gave it the attention it desperately needed," he added. Manjrekar, who has been critical of Virat in the past, was quick to highlight the legacy he left behind, considering the high intensity that he managed to maintain irrespective of the situation he found himself in. "He's still playing in the IPL, but he always had the desire to keep Test cricket alive. As a captain, I've never seen an Indian Test skipper who managed to keep the intensity so high, even when the team wasn't doing well or when things were drifting. That's a legacy in itself," he said. In a career that redefined the demands of the game, Virat scored 9,230 runs at an average of 46.85, with 30 centuries and 31 fifties, and finished as India's fourth-highest run-getter in the format. (ANI)
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