Former Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) legendary batter AB de Villiers has recalled his initial impression of Virat Kohli, claiming that he seemed a lot more arrogant in nature. However, the former South African skipper admitted that he was quite wrong when he started playing with Kohli.
Kohli and De Villiers established themselves as one of the dangerous partnerships when the latter was still playing in the IPL. The pair holds the record for the highest partnership for any wicket in IPL history when they put on 229 against the Gujarat Lions in Bengaluru in 2016.
First Impressions of King Kohli! AB de Villiers once thought Virat Kohli was arrogant—but soon realized he was a wonderful human and an even better cricketer!
— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) March 16, 2025
Hear cricketing legends share their first impressions of Kohli and how his role as RCB’s vice-captain shaped the… pic.twitter.com/gPEjrkRupy
Speaking in a video uploaded by Star Sports, De Villiers claimed:
"To start off, I thought Virat was like, just watching him on TV, I thought this guy is a bit arrogant. I don't know about him. But once I got to play with him, I realised that he's a wonderful human being and an even better cricket player."