Virat Kohli has been under the microscope since making a return to the Ranji Trophy for the Delhi vs Railways match. Not just his performances with the bat or his antics on the field, but even the food that Kohli has been consuming upon his return has been making headlines. In the practice, Kohli snubbed chole puri but couldn’t say no to kadi chawal. On Day 1 of the match against Railways, the iconic batter is said to have consumed ‘chilli paneer’ instead of chili chicken, which used to be his favourite 12-13 years ago when he last played for Delhi in a domestic red-ball match.
It was Sanjay Jha, the chef at Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA), who decided to share some intricate details of Kohli’s return, highlighting how down-to-earth the prolific batter still is despite his grand success.
However, seeing the microscopic details of Kohli’s homecoming being made public, fans unleashed some hilarious memes on social media. Here are a few of them:
Live reporting from the ground. Kohli drank 1 bottle of water in 2 minutes. We are in constant touch with our sources to find out if he had chilli paneer with hands or fork. Stay tuned. pic.twitter.com/RStQ7ozDLZ
— Silly Point (@FarziCricketer) January 30, 2025
Today, according to a leading magazine, Virat Kohli ordered chilli paneer instead of his previous favourite, chilli chicken.
I will be disappointed with anything less than three hours of intense analysis involving cricket experts, dieticians and at least one veterinarian who…
— Joy Bhattacharjya (@joybhattacharj) January 30, 2025
Virat Kohli ordered chilli paneer from local DDCA canteen #ViratKohli𓃵 pic.twitter.com/M7sswcKx42
— Shrivas as (@Ashrivas44) January 30, 2025
Former India cricketer Aakash Chopra even mocked the chili paneer update on social media, calling it ‘breaking news’.
“I have been running a canteen for 25 years and I have known Virat Kohli from his childhood. He used to eat from our canteen. He started his career from here, but he doesn’t have any arrogance. Even today, he stays humble while talking to us and the waiters just how a normal person does,” said Delhi and District Cricket Association chef Sanjay Jha in an interview with Sports Today.
“Earlier, chilli chicken used to be his favourite. Not only did he use to eat it, but he also recommended it to his teammates. Now he has chole bhature or kadhi chawal. Once I asked him if we should order something from outside, but he refused, saying that he wanted to have food from our canteen itself,” Sanjay Jha said.
Virat Kohli’s Homecoming
Such was the excitement around his return that the DDCA officials were forced to open extra stands due to a crowd of over 10,000, which is not heard of for a Ranji Trophy game. Delhi Police also had resorted to a lathi charge to control the crowd at the stadium.
The pace trio of Navdeep Saini, Siddhant Sharma and Money Grewal exploited the early morning conditions to reduce Railways to 66 for five in the first session before Upendra and veteran spinner Karn Sharma (50 off 105) forged a 104-run stand for the sixth wicket.
After bundling out Railways for 241, Delhi had lost one wicket for the score of 41 by stumps on Day 1.
With PTI Inputs
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