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When Virat Kohli Was Caught Using A Cuss Word Which Triggered The South African Team

Aakash Saini

Virat Kohli and Murali Vijay [Source: @silly_af_, @AwaaraHoon/x]Virat Kohli and Murali Vijay [Source: @silly_af_, @AwaaraHoon/x]

Indian cricket’s aggressive renaissance under the Virat Kohli era was not just defined by wins on the field, but also by the fiery intent, charged words, and unshakable self-belief that came to symbolize the team’s identity. Among the many moments that embodied this spirit throughout his 68-match captaincy career, one of Kohli’s on-field remark from January 2018 stood out as a raw, unfiltered expression of his competitive rage.

The incident in question, now a part of Indian cricket’s modern folklore, took place around the midway stage of India’s fighting three-match Test tour of South Africa at the SuperSport Park in Centurion.

When Virat Kohli’s Triggering Taunt Defined Indian Swagger

On Day 2 of India’s second Test match of the series against hosts South Africa back in January 2018 in Centurion, Virat Kohli found himself in the middle of formulating a fighting partnership with fellow senior batter Murali Vijay.

Up against South Africa’s first innings total of 335, the two cricketers formed forces at 28-2 and cautiously navigated Team India to 80-2 by Tea. However, just at the brink of Tea break, captain Virat Kohli can be seen encouraging Vijay to keep batting till the evening, as it would inherently “get the South African’s frustrated.

The video of Kohli’s humorous sledging moment can be watched here.

How the IND Vs SA Test match went by

Unfortunately for Virat Kohli, Team India failed to match their verbal aura, at least in the second innings of the match as they fell 135 runs short of the hosts to concede the series 0-2 with a match to spare.

India’s trademark grit came to the fore in the very next match, where a Mohammed Shami-inspired bowling blitz blew away South Africa by 63 runs.