'I Picked Virat Kohli': Vijay Mallya Explains Why RCB Signed Batting Superstar At IPL Auction
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Virat Kohli joined Royal Challengers Bengaluru fresh from his exploits at the U19 World Cup and went on to become one the franchise legends.
From joining Royal Challengers Bengaluru at his base price of Rs 12 lakh to becoming the franchise's highest paid cricketer, Virat Kohli has had a career to remember. Kohli first caught the attention of cricketing world when he captained India to title win at the U-19 World Cup in 2008 and subsequently landed a contract with RCB before the inaugural IPL season that was held in the same year.
Since the U-19 players weren't part of the inaugural auction pool, they were picked through a pre-season draft instead. Former RCB owner Vijay Mallya says that it was him to picked Kohli after being impressed by what the teenager did at the junior world cup.
'I picked Virat," Mallya told Raj Shamani on the latter's YouTube channel. 'There were young cricketers and it was draw by lots. I got to pick and immediately went for Virat."
'Shortly before the selection process, they were playing the U19 world cup, and I was very impressed. So I picked him. And 18 years later, he's still there. He was a young kid that time. Full of energy, great talent and (now) one of the greatest Indian cricketers ever," he added.
Little did RCB know that the teenager will become one of the greatest batters to have played the game.
Kohli has stayed with RCB since the inaugural season and despite being approached by other franchises, he has stuck with them, He went on to captain the team and led them into the IPL final in 2016 – a season where he smashed a record-breaking 973 runs. RCB though suffered a heartbreaking defeat to Sunrisers Hyderabad in the title clash despite being in control of the match.
Kohli's dream of winning an IPL trophy with RCB finally came true earlier this week when they beat Punjab Kings by six runs at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad.
First Published:
June 06, 2025, 11:17 IST
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