8 things you didn't know about Virat Kohli

#2 The story behind his nickname "Cheeku"

Kohli's nickname came from a Hindi cartoon character

MS Dhoni can often be heard referring to Kohli as "Cheeku" from behind the stumps. While the name in itself is goofy and kiddish, what piqued the nation's interest was the story hidden behind this seemingly absurd nickname. Turns out, King Kohli had attained this nickname way before he started playing for India.

Apparently, Kohli had been playing in the Ranji Trophy for the Delhi side when he'd suddenly begun to suffer from a phobia of his hair falling out! As a result, he rushed to a nearby salon and returned with his hair cropped short. With big ears and an almost shaved head, Kohli's look seemed rather bizarre to his teammates and the-then Assistant Coach of Delhi, Ajit Chowdhury, jokingly commented that he resembled the cartoon character called "Cheeku", who was a rabbit in the children's comic book called "Champak".

Since then, the name has stuck and he's lovingly called "Cheeku" till date by the likes of MSD and Yuvraj Singh.