“Action Hi Bhagwaan Ne Itna Ganda Banaya Hai”: Virat Kohli Once Revealed a Hilarious Account of His Unusual Bowling Action

Former India captain Virat Kohli would rarely have an on-field attribute which would cause him or his fans  major embarrassment. However, a few years ago, an otherwise classy batter with all the glorious shots in the book, would recoil at the sight of watching himself bowl on the 22 yards.

People who’ve followed the game do remember Kohli bowling, though. He was the one who had bowled the final over against West Indies during ICC World Twenty20 semi-final 2016 at the Wankhede Stadium.

While his bowling action is certainly not one the upcoming crop of bowlers would wish to emulate, the 34-year-old himself admits how ugly he feels it is to have a sight of the same. Moreover, the sad part is that there’s no other way he knows to bowl a delivery.

Virat Kohli Once Revealed a Hilarious Account of His Unusual Bowling Action

That being said, there was a time when Kohli did take some pride in his action. Former India left-arm pacer Zaheer Khan, in fact, once revealed that the star batter did think he was a deceptive bowler.

During an interaction with Gaurav Kapur in his chat show Breakfast With Champions some five years ago, Kohli was asked to shed some light on the same. Bursting into laughter, he sheepishly admitted that while he can bowl sometimes, he cannot do it consistently at the international level.

He went on to share a hilarious incident from an IPL match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and Punjab Kings (then Kings XI Punjab), where both the batter and wicket-keeper were caught off-guard with the way he delivered the ball.

“Maine Fisalte Hue Ball Daal di Thi” – Kohli

The RCB batter explained how he had slipped during his delivery stride and yet managed to bowl an inadvertent full toss, which had left both batter Ravi Bopara and wicket-keeper Mark Boucher fending for cover.

“Ek baar to maine fisalte hue ball daal di thi. To Mark Boucher keeper tha, IPL ka match tha Kings XI Punjab se aur Bopara batting kar raha tha. Achcha kabhi kabhi kya hota hai na, aap girte ho to ball chooth’ti nahi hai. Uss din kya hua, main gira, No-Ball bhi nahi thi, aur ball haath se chooth gayi aur stump ke itne upar se gayi. Bopara yun khel raha hai, aur Boucher yun pakad raha hai! Ye kar kya raha hai ye aadmi! Neeche leta hua hai, aur ball fek di!. Aur swing bhi ho gayi [Once, I had slipped and released the ball. It was an IPL match against Kings XI Punjab. Bopara was batting while Boucher was keeping wickets. So, what happens is sometimes when you slip and fall, the ball does not come out of your hand. However, that day, I slipped and delivered the ball which went just above the stumps, enough for it to not be ruled a No-Ball. Both Bopara and Boucher were fending for cover. They were like, ‘What is this man doing? He lied down and delivered the ball, and managed to swing it as well’].”

He further went on to admit that he’s been cursed with an unusual bowling action, and he just cannot bowl with any other action.

“Mera action hi bhagwaan ne itna ganda banaya hai. Matlab pata nahi yaar, meri rhythm hi uss action se banti hai. Man kisi aur tarike se bowling hi nahi kar sakta. Main spin bhi daalta hun tab bhi aise hi hota hai! [God had cursed me with this terrible action. I don’t know, I can find rhythm by bowling it that particular way only. Even if I bowl spin, I bowl in that very manner].”

Virat Kohli bowling record

Kohli has bowled across 26 IPL innings, and had managed to scalp a mere four wickets. The last he had bowled in an IPL match was a lone over during the 2016 edition of the league.

In international cricket, the legendary cricketer has bowled across 48 ODIs and 13 T20Is, managing to take four wickets apiece in both the white-ball formats. He has also bowled across 11 Tests, but with no success.