Virat Kohli is a livewire on the pitch when he is playing for India or his franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Kohli enjoys the pressure and likes to be in the face of the opposition during a game. However, off the field, he remains a calm character who rarely lets the spotlight on him affect him too much. One of the best batters in the world at present, Kohli has already established his credentials as one of the legends of the game and has been brilliant across formats for the Indian team.

The former India captain has risen through the ranks having played age-level cricket and first-class matches before making his international debut for the Indian team in 2008. He was also the captain of the India U-19 side which lifted the U-19 World Cup in the year 2008.

While Kohli himself is a prankster in the Indian team and likes to have fun with his teammates, the superstar batter was once pranked by his teammates during his days in junior-level cricket. Kohli's former Delhi and India U-19 teammate Pradeep Sangwan recalled how he was reduced to tears and didn't sleep for a night after being pranked by his coach and teammates ahead of an under-17 match.

Also Read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/mithali-rajs-career-in-numbers-an-undisputed-legend-of-indian-cricket-486206">Mithali Raj's career in numbers - An undisputed legend of Indian cricket</a>

“We were playing in an U17 match in Punjab. He (Kohli) hadn't been scoring big in the past 2-3 innings. We had a coach named Ajit Chaudhary who used to call him 'Cheeku'. Virat was the main player of our team, and Ajit sir funnily suggested, 'let's tell him he will not play in the next match'. We all joined in on the prank,” Sangwan told News24.

“In the team meeting, sir didn't announce Virat's name. He went to his room and started crying! He phone-called sir and said I've scored a 200 and a 250.. he had scored big in that season, to be honest. It's just that he didn't get enough runs in the past 2-3 innings. He got so emotional he even phone-called Rajkumar sir (Virat's childhood coach)," he further recalled.

Sangwan then went on to reveal it was he who told Kohli that it was all a prank and that he would play the next game after the former India captain told him at the time that he hadn't slept the whole night due to the coach's decision of leaving him out.&nbsp;

"Then, he came to me and asked, 'Tell me Sangwan, what's wrong? I scored so many runs this season'. I told him, 'Yes yes, that's very wrong!'. He wasn't able to sleep all night as well. He said, “No, I don't want to sleep. What's the point of sleeping when I'm not playing?' Then, I told him that he is&nbsp;playing. It was all a prank," said Sangwan.

Also Read:&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/virat-kohli-adds-another-feather-to-illustrious-hat-becomes-1st-indian-to-reach-200-m-followers-on-instagram-486126">Virat Kohli&nbsp;becomes 1st Indian to reach 200 million&nbsp;followers on Instagram</a>

Kohli and Sangwan were part of the India U-19 team in the 2008 U-19 World Cup. Delhi Capitals (Then Delhi Daredevils) had the chance to pick the first player from the U-19 draft at the IPL 2008 mega auction. They went for Sangwan, a fast bowler instead of Kohli, who was picked by his current team RCB.

Kohli has since played only for RCB in his IPL career and is currently the leading run-getter of all time in IPL history with 6411 runs in 216 matches at an average of 36.43, including five centuries and 42 fifties. He stepped down as captain of the side last year but is still their most expensive player in the current squad. 
&nbsp;

Virat Kohli is a livewire on the pitch when he is playing for India or his franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Kohli enjoys the pressure and likes to be in the face of the opposition during a game.

Virat Kohli is a livewire on the pitch when he is playing for India or his franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL). Kohli enjoys the pressure and likes to be in the face of the opposition during a game. However, off the field, he remains a calm character who rarely lets the spotlight on him affect him too much. One of the best batters in the world at present, Kohli has already established his credentials as one of the legends of the game and has been brilliant across formats for the Indian team. The former India captain has risen through the ranks having played age-level cricket and first-class matches before making his international debut for the Indian team in 2008. He was also the captain of the India U-19 side which lifted the U-19 World Cup in the year 2008. While Kohli himself is a prankster in the Indian team and likes to have fun with his teammates, the superstar batter was once pranked by his teammates during his days in junior-level cricket. Kohli's former Delhi and India U-19 teammate Pradeep Sangwan recalled how he was reduced to tears and didn't sleep for a night after being pranked by his coach and teammates ahead of an under-17 match. Also Read: Mithali Raj's career in numbers - An undisputed legend of Indian cricket “We were playing in an U17 match in Punjab. He (Kohli) hadn't been scoring big in the past 2-3 innings. We had a coach named Ajit Chaudhary who used to call him 'Cheeku'. Virat was the main player of our team, and Ajit sir funnily suggested, 'let's tell him he will not play in the next match'. We all joined in on the prank,” Sangwan told News24. “In the team meeting, sir didn't announce Virat's name. He went to his room and started crying! He phone-called sir and said I've scored a 200 and a 250.. he had scored big in that season, to be honest. It's just that he didn't get enough runs in the past 2-3 innings. He got so emotional he even phone-called Rajkumar sir (Virat's childhood coach)," he further recalled. Sangwan then went on to reveal it was he who told Kohli that it was all a prank and that he would play the next game after the former India captain told him at the time that he hadn't slept the whole night due to the coach's decision of leaving him out. "Then, he came to me and asked, 'Tell me Sangwan, what's wrong? I scored so many runs this season'. I told him, 'Yes yes, that's very wrong!'. He wasn't able to sleep all night as well. He said, “No, I don't want to sleep. What's the point of sleeping when I'm not playing?' Then, I told him that he is playing. It was all a prank," said Sangwan. Also Read: Virat Kohli becomes 1st Indian to reach 200 million followers on Instagram Kohli and Sangwan were part of the India U-19 team in the 2008 U-19 World Cup. Delhi Capitals (Then Delhi Daredevils) had the chance to pick the first player from the U-19 draft at the IPL 2008 mega auction. They went for Sangwan, a fast bowler instead of Kohli, who was picked by his current team RCB. Kohli has since played only for RCB in his IPL career and is currently the leading run-getter of all time in IPL history with 6411 runs in 216 matches at an average of 36.43, including five centuries and 42 fifties. He stepped down as captain of the side last year but is still their most expensive player in the current squad.

Virat Kohli started crying, didn't sleep that night: Ex-teammate recalls brutal prank on former India captain

U-19 World Cup-winning skipper Yash Dhull on Wednesday was named in Delhi`s Ranji Trophy squad and the team will be led by Pradeep Sangwan.

Pacer Navdeep Saini has also been named in Delhi`s squad while Ishant Sharma is not a member of the Ranji Trophy team, Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) confirmed.

Delhi is grouped alongside Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, and Jharkhand and all their Group H matches will be held in Guwahati.

ALSO READ |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/yash-dhull-led-u19-world-cup-winning-team-watches-2nd-odi-between-india-and-west-indies-watch-451716">Yash Dhull-led U19 World Cup-winning team watches 2nd ODI between India and West Indies - WATCH</a>

Round 1 of the Ranji Trophy would be held from February 17-20 and all teams will assemble at their base venues on February 10.

The second round will go ahead from February 24-27 while the third round will go ahead from March 3-6. On Tuesday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) sent out Ranji Trophy staging guidelines to all nine host associations.

The document which is in possession of ANI states that the players and support staff will have to undergo five-day quarantine before starting their training for the tournament.

ALSO READ |&nbsp;<a href="https://www.wionews.com/sports/shy-players-dont-open-up-pragyan-ojha-differentiates-captaincy-styles-of-virat-kohli-rohit-sharma-451198">'Shy players don't open up....' - Pragyan Ojha differentiates captaincy styles of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma</a>

Every team has been asked to keep the squad size to 30 which is inclusive of the support staff. The teams have also been asked to have a minimum of 20 players in the squad and the board has also allowed the states to carry two reserves looking at COVID-19.

All the teams have been asked to report at their base on February 10 and then they have to undergo a five-day quarantine. After testing negative for COVID-19, teams can train on February 15 and 16. The quarantine period for pre-quarters will be from March 7-10 and the pre-quarterfinal clash would be played from March 12-16.

Delhi squad: Pradeep Sangwan (C), Nitish Rana, Dhruv Shorey, Priyansh Arya, Yash Dhull, Kshitiz Sharma, Jonty Sindhu, Himmat Singh, Lalit Yadav, Vaibhav Kandpal, Anuj Rawat, Lakshay Thareja, Navdeep Saini, Simranjeet Singh, Mayank Yadav, Kuldip Yadav, Vikas Mishra, Shivank Vashishth, Shivam Sharma, Tejas Baroka, Hrithik Shokeen, Dev Lakra.

U-19 World Cup-winning skipper Yash Dhull on Wednesday was named in Delhi`s Ranji Trophy squad and the team will be led by Pradeep Sangwan. Pacer Navdeep Saini has also been named in Delhi`s squad while Ishant Sharma is not a member of the Ranji Trophy team, Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) confirmed.

U-19 World Cup-winning skipper Yash Dhull on Wednesday was named in Delhi`s Ranji Trophy squad and the team will be led by Pradeep Sangwan. Pacer Navdeep Saini has also been named in Delhi`s squad while Ishant Sharma is not a member of the Ranji Trophy team, Delhi and District Cricket Association (DDCA) confirmed. Delhi is grouped alongside Tamil Nadu, Chhattisgarh, and Jharkhand and all their Group H matches will be held in Guwahati. ALSO READ | Yash Dhull-led U19 World Cup-winning team watches 2nd ODI between India and West Indies - WATCH Round 1 of the Ranji Trophy would be held from February 17-20 and all teams will assemble at their base venues on February 10. The second round will go ahead from February 24-27 while the third round will go ahead from March 3-6. On Tuesday, the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) sent out Ranji Trophy staging guidelines to all nine host associations. The document which is in possession of ANI states that the players and support staff will have to undergo five-day quarantine before starting their training for the tournament. ALSO READ | 'Shy players don't open up....' - Pragyan Ojha differentiates captaincy styles of Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma Every team has been asked to keep the squad size to 30 which is inclusive of the support staff. The teams have also been asked to have a minimum of 20 players in the squad and the board has also allowed the states to carry two reserves looking at COVID-19. All the teams have been asked to report at their base on February 10 and then they have to undergo a five-day quarantine. After testing negative for COVID-19, teams can train on February 15 and 16. The quarantine period for pre-quarters will be from March 7-10 and the pre-quarterfinal clash would be played from March 12-16. Delhi squad: Pradeep Sangwan (C), Nitish Rana, Dhruv Shorey, Priyansh Arya, Yash Dhull, Kshitiz Sharma, Jonty Sindhu, Himmat Singh, Lalit Yadav, Vaibhav Kandpal, Anuj Rawat, Lakshay Thareja, Navdeep Saini, Simranjeet Singh, Mayank Yadav, Kuldip Yadav, Vikas Mishra, Shivank Vashishth, Shivam Sharma, Tejas Baroka, Hrithik Shokeen, Dev Lakra.

Ranji Trophy: Pradeep Sangwan to lead Delhi, U-19 World Cup winning captain Yash Dhull also included

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Virat Kohli started crying, didn't sleep that night: Ex-teammate recalls brutal prank on former India captain

Ranji Trophy: Pradeep Sangwan to lead Delhi, U-19 World Cup winning captain Yash Dhull also included