Virat Kohli pips Neymar Jr to become 2nd most followed sportsperson on X 

Former India captain Virat Kohli, on Wednesday (June 5), became the second most followed sportsperson on social media platform X (formerly Twitter). With 63.5 million followers, Kohli went past Brazilian star footballer Neymar Jr, who currently plays for Al Hilal in Saudi Arabia.

Kohli is a fitness icon in Indian sporting circles and is celebrated by people of all ages. His match-winning knocks for India across formats remain etched in the memory of millions of fans.

The 35-year-old cricketer, however, is still behind legendary footballer Cristiano Ronaldo, who has a following of 111.4 million on the micro-blogging platform.

Elon Musk, who owns X, has the most followers on the platform with 186.1 million. Former American President Barack Obama is second with 131.8 million. Ronaldo is among the top three most followed personalities on X.

India Prime Minister Narendra Modi is the only Indian in the top 10 list. Meanwhile, Kohli is ranked 19th in the overall list. He is miles ahead of his competitors among cricketers. The legendary Sachin Tendulkar is second with 40 million followers on the website.

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“Say anything about Virat Kohli and look out” – Pat Cummins

Australia's Test and ODI captain Pat Cummins recently opened up about his episode with Virat Kohli fans after wishing for him to get out without scoring a century. He told ‘The Grade Cricketer’ podcast:

“If you live on social media at all, you get absolutely hounded by them. Say anything about Virat Kohli and look out for the next few years. I remember I said something a few years ago and it was actually a compliment."

"I said that he is a gun player and hoped he would not score 100 and then after six months when he scored a 100, my social media blew up,” he added.

New Zealand's cricketer-turned-commentator Simon Doull recently said that he received death threats for criticizing Kohli. He told Cricbuzz:

"I have said a thousand great things about Virat Kohli but I say one thing negative or construed to be negative, and I get death threats. That’s the shame of it."

Kohli will next be seen in action for India against Ireland in their T20 World Cup opening game at Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York on Wednesday (June 5).