‘Side main aa, tere ko main…’ – Virat Kohli recounts getting sledged by Ishant Sharma in first season of IPL

Virat Kohli is getting ready to take on Delhi Capitals (DC) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 season. Kohli scored a fifty in the last game for Royal Challengers Bengaluru in the game against Mumbai Indians (MI) on Monday. The knock played a key role in RCB winning the game by 12 runs.

The former RCB skipper was speaking to commentator and presenter Jatin Sapru, where he recounted getting sledged in the IPL 2008 season. The person to sledge Kohli was none other than Delhi and India teammate Ishant Sharma. In the first few seasons of the IPL, Ishant Sharma was playing for the Kolkata Knight Riders. 

During his chat with Jatin Sapru for JioHotstar, Kohli said, “We were staying in different hotels. There was not much conversation in this game. But yeah, he was sledging me. He had come from Australia and was a star. Side mein aa, tere ko main batata hoon. Lot of pressure in this game, I felt, because I had never played in front of a packed stadium before.”

Virat Kohli recalls early struggles in the IPL 

When the IPL began in 2008, Virat Kohli was drafted by RCB and seen as the next young breakout star in Indian cricket. Kohli had come back home after leading India’s under-19 World Cup team to the title win. Delhi Capitals incidentally had passed on the chance to draft Kohli and went for pacer Pradeep Sangwan. 

Speaking about his early struggles in the league, Kohli said, “In my first three years with Royal Challengers Bengaluru, I didn't get many opportunities to bat in the top order. I was usually sent in lower down. So, I wasn't really able to crack the IPL in a big way early on, apart from the occasional impactful knock. But the 2009 season felt a bit better for me.”

The 36-year-old also said, “The pitches that year suited my game – the ball was coming onto the bat nicely, and I could play my shots more freely. It was definitely an interesting phase in my career. From 2010 onwards, I started performing more consistently, and by 2011, I was regularly batting at number three. That's when my IPL journey really began to take shape."