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Touching Moment As Kohli Hugs Tendulkar At Wankhede Before Sri Lanka Face-off

image-logzyksvTendulkar and Kohli share a heartening moment (Twitter)

Virat Kohli greeted Sachin Tendulkar with warmth and love as the two legends of Indian cricket shared a wonderful moment just prior to India's league-stage encounter of the ICC World Cup 2023 against Sri Lanka in Mumbai on Thursday (November 2). 

The maestro and his great successor hugged each other at the sidelines of the fixture witnessed by a packed crowd inside the iconic Wankhede Stadium. The hug took place after Tendulkar and Kohli met ahead of the national anthem duties before the beginning of the proceedings for the India-Sri Lanka contest.

Notably, Tendulkar had joined the two sides for the traditional pre-match anthems as a 'Unicel' representative for charity and goodness, giving Kohli a chance to once again interact with his inspiration and cricketing idol. 

Kohli-Tendulkar Hug At Wankhede Before World Cup Match

The great Indian No.3 didn't waste the opportunity to meet the legendary opener, who inspired him to the heights he has reached in his illustrious career. Kohli greeted Tendulkar with a wonderful hug and had a long chat with him before they took their respective spots for the anthem ritual. 

The incident was made special by the fact that Kohli was approaching a special landmark in his remarkable career at Tendulkar's den. The modern-day giant, who had recorded his 48th One-Day International century earlier in the tournament, was one away from levelling up with the 'Master Blaster' in terms of ODI hundreds tally. 


Kohli is anticipated to comfortably jump over his idol in the century count for the 50-over format, aged still only 34 and being the fittest cricketing personality in the world. The great player is expected to commit to India duties for another four-year cycle, potentially eyeing one more World Cup in 2027 in South Africa before he calls it quits. 

If he is around, Kohli can easily surpass Tendulkar's tally by a healthy margin, which would be an astonishing achievement, something no one would've foreseen when the unparalleled legend retired a decade back and passed the batton and the responsibility of being the strongest pillar of Indian batting in the year 2013.