Virat Kohli news: BCCI hits back at Indian skipper

Virat Kohli's controversial response to a fan's Tweet, which led to him being slammed on social media by many has now irked the BCCI as well. BCCI treasurer Anirudh Chaudhary has hit back at the Indian skipper for his comments and a BCCI official even took dig at Kohli and his deal with Puma.

Speaking about Kohli's comments, BCCI treasurer Anirudh Chaudhary told TOI: "We, at the BCCI value our cricket fans and respect them and their choices. I loved to watch Sunil Gavaskar bat, but also loved watching (Gordon) Greenidge, (Desmond) Haynes and Viv Richards. I loved watching Sachin, Viru (Virender Sehwag), Sourav (Ganguly), VVS (Laxman), Rahul (Dravid) bat but also loved Mark Waugh, Brian Lara and so many others.

“Shane Warne for me has been the most exciting spinner to watch, but one felt the most thrill when Anil (Kumble) was bowling. Kapil Dev on song was a delight to watch as were (Richard) Hadlee, (Ian) Botham and Imran (Khan). I think this has to do with respecting cricketing excellence without any thoughts about geographical or political boundaries,” he added.

That wasn't the only pushback that Kohli got for his comments as a BCCI official also added that Kohli might have violated his contract with his statement.

“Virat needs to understand that if the fans go away to other countries, then no Puma etc. will want to sign him for Rs. 100 crores. The BCCI’s revenue will fall, and consequently the players’ fees. If he checks his contract, he may find that he may have violated his contract with this statement. Just like he violated BCCI’s contract with Nike when travelling to England to support Puma,” a BCCI official said.

In response to a tweet from a fan who said that he saw "nothing special" in Kohli's batting and added that he enjoyed watching "English and Australian batsmen more", the Indian captain asked the fan to go "live somewhere else".

“Okay, I don’t think you should live in India then… you should go and live somewhere else no. Why are you living in our country and loving other countries? I don’t mind you not liking me but I don’t think you should live in our country and like other things. Get your priorities right,” Kohli said.

Those comments landed him in trouble on social media, as several fans hit back at the Indian skipper for his views, which turned out to be far from universal. Now with the BCCI responding to the statement as well, Kohli could end up regretting what he might have thought was an innocuous statement for his app. Especially, if it turns out that he violated his contract with the BCCI and that lands him in further trouble.