Shoaib Akhtar Feels Marriage Affected Captain Virat Kohli

[Savak]

IND vs SA: 'I Would Have Not Even Married if I Were in his Place'-Shoaib Akhtar Feels Marriage Affected Captain Virat Kohli

Shoaib Akhtar added being the captain of a national team is an added responsibility enough and a player must focus on the job, getting married can wait.

LAST UPDATED: JANUARY 23, 2022, 16:48 IST

Last four months or so have been really tough for Virat Kohli the captain. In September, he stepped down from T20I captaincy, then he was sacked from ODI captaincy, and in the new year, he stepped down from Test captaincy. Ex-Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar said he wouldn’t have married had he been in a pressure-cooker situation like Kohli had been in the last four years or so. He also added that he was in no favour of the 33-year-old getting the captaincy in the first place.

“I would have not even married if I were in his place. I had just scored runs and enjoyed cricket, these 10-12 years of cricket are different time and doesn’t come again, I am not saying getting married is wrong but If you are playing for India, you would have enjoyed a time a little. fans are crazy about Kohli and he had to maintain that love he is getting for the last 20 years," he told ‘Dainik Jagran.’

“There is pressure from the children, of the family. As the responsibility increases, so does the pressure. Cricketers have a short career span of 14-15 years in which you stay at the peak for five-six years. Those years of Virat have passed, now he has to struggle," he elaborated.

He added being the captain of a national team is an added responsibility enough and a player must focus on the job, getting married can wait. “ As a captain, you have to think a lot. I am not against marriage but I believe play while playing, there shouldn’t be much pressure, play freely, pick up your things and play fiercely. I got married when I retired from the captain. As a Captain, you have to face the media, the brand, all the things which come with it," he said.

Link: https://www.news18.com/cricketnext/n...i-4689740.html

[Rana]

Get ready for a broken Arm Shoaib…From Anushka Sharma

[HappyWarsFan]

He is right.

[topspin]

Totally agree with Shoaib. Image if him or IK got married during their playing careers, I genuinely don't think they would have had the same success.

[RedwoodOriginal]

Its statements like these which is why Shoaib Akhtar will always remain a clown.

There are some things that are more important than scoring runs and taking wickets. Just because you haven't been able to grasp that doesn't mean everyone else will be unable to do so as well.

This kind of masala/click-bait journalism is why most of our ex-cricketers will always be seen as jokes instead of analysts or pundits.

[kingusama92]

What a silly take.

Covid ruined his rhythm.

The year before he averaged 68 in Tests, 59 in ODIs, and 77 in T20Is. He was married then too.

After the pandemic, he went downhill. When you combine aging and the pandemic, he hasn't been able to come out of it. It has nothing to do with his marriage.

If marriage was that big of a deal, all of the top players would be single men. Steve Smith, Labuschagne, Cummins, Root, Williamson, etc. are all married and most of them have kids too. Even India's legends throughout history were married men with children.

[YousafTheBeast]

He’s right, the same happened to Ahmed Shehzad, but people will say his performance declined because of the bouncer, which isn’t true.

Hassan Ali was doing well until he started getting back injuries. Injuries caused due to his marriage.

The list goes on and on.

[Rana]

He’s right, the same happened to Ahmed Shehzad, but people will say his performance declined because of the bouncer, which isn’t true.

Hassan Ali was doing well until he started getting back injuries. Injuries caused due to his marriage.

The list goes on and on.

Lol back injuries because of marriage. Hassan didn’t need to get married to achieve those back injuries

[sweep_shot]

I don't think marriage has anything to do with it.

Many successful players were successful despite being married. Tendulkar, Murali, Inzamam etc.

Kohli is simply getting old and age is probably catching up with him.

[Major]

He’s right, the same happened to Ahmed Shehzad, but people will say his performance declined because of the bouncer, which isn’t true.

Hassan Ali was doing well until he started getting back injuries. Injuries caused due to his marriage.

The list goes on and on.

You are wrong as usual.

Hasan ali married during the time he was injured.

After getting married and doing rehab he worked hard and than performed in domestic.

Even now he is the second highest wicket taker of 2021.

[Kroll]

Yes, that's right folks - Anushka told him to start playing crap or else...

[YousafTheBeast]

Lol back injuries because of marriage. Hassan didn’t need to get married to achieve those back injuries

You are wrong as usual.

Hasan ali married during the time he was injured.

After getting married and doing rehab he worked hard and than performed in domestic.

Even now he is the second highest wicket taker of 2021.

@Major, like the quote above, marriage wasn’t necessary in Hasan’s case, the injury had occurred prior due to heavy lifting.

[shaz619]

IND vs SA: 'I Would Have Not Even Married if I Were in his Place'-Shoaib Akhtar Feels Marriage Affected Captain Virat Kohli

Shoaib Akhtar added being the captain of a national team is an added responsibility enough and a player must focus on the job, getting married can wait.

LAST UPDATED: JANUARY 23, 2022, 16:48 IST

Last four months or so have been really tough for Virat Kohli the captain. In September, he stepped down from T20I captaincy, then he was sacked from ODI captaincy, and in the new year, he stepped down from Test captaincy. Ex-Pakistan speedster Shoaib Akhtar said he wouldn’t have married had he been in a pressure-cooker situation like Kohli had been in the last four years or so. He also added that he was in no favour of the 33-year-old getting the captaincy in the first place.

“I would have not even married if I were in his place. I had just scored runs and enjoyed cricket, these 10-12 years of cricket are different time and doesn’t come again, I am not saying getting married is wrong but If you are playing for India, you would have enjoyed a time a little. fans are crazy about Kohli and he had to maintain that love he is getting for the last 20 years," he told ‘Dainik Jagran.’

“There is pressure from the children, of the family. As the responsibility increases, so does the pressure. Cricketers have a short career span of 14-15 years in which you stay at the peak for five-six years. Those years of Virat have passed, now he has to struggle," he elaborated.

He added being the captain of a national team is an added responsibility enough and a player must focus on the job, getting married can wait. “ As a captain, you have to think a lot. I am not against marriage but I believe play while playing, there shouldn’t be much pressure, play freely, pick up your things and play fiercely. I got married when I retired from the captain. As a Captain, you have to face the media, the brand, all the things which come with it," he said.

Link: https://www.news18.com/cricketnext/n...i-4689740.html

It depends on the sort of partner you’re with but in a sport like cricket though, I wouldn’t have thought it would impact him as much. In a sport like Boxing, the margin for error is small, I think Khan would have been more effective if he delayed marrying a socialite from a privileged background who didn’t grasp the rigours of the sport, but in places like Mexico and the Philippines where the sport is a part of the culture and high popularity among working place, much higher chance of finding someone very supportive as we’ve seen with the likes of Manny and Canelo, very down to earth family backgrounds on both ends with great knowledge of the sacrifice involved.

I don’t think marriage itself has contributed to Kohli’s cricket, his performances are overly criticised to due to the unrealistic expectations, having led his team to new highs, he could probably do with a break but he can still go with the bat as we’ve seen recently.

[The_KING]

It's statements like that tells me that Shoaib Akhtar is a complete jahil. So many sportspeople in various different sports get married and it never affects their form. But a cricketer should wait until their careers are over to get married, because according to geniuses like Akhtar, it is detrimental to their form. What absolute rubbish.

[Savak]

More than marriage, a case could be made for fatherhood having dimmed his competitive edge in the sport

[YousafTheBeast]

It's statements like that tells me that Shoaib Akhtar is a complete jahil. So many sportspeople in various different sports get married and it never affects their form. But a cricketer should wait until their careers are over to get married, because according to geniuses like Akhtar, it is detrimental to their form. What absolute rubbish.

Honestly, it’s kinda rude to call someone a jahil without doing your own research. He probably knows more about competitive performances than us keyboard warriors.

There’s studies that show that male tennis players have a higher DECREASE in winning percentage than a male tennis player that is single. If it can happen in tennis then why not in cricket?

[Sarwar89]

Honestly, it’s kinda rude to call someone a jahil without doing your own research. He probably knows more about competitive performances than us keyboard warriors.

There’s studies that show that male tennis players have a higher DECREASE in winning percentage than a male tennis player that is single. If it can happen in tennis then why not in cricket?

To an extent relationships can impact but certainly not in Indian culture as indian culture promotes strong marriage bond and family values and most of their cricketers are good obedient husbands.

But other countries like Australia it can impact. Look at Ben Stokes situation or Graeme Thorpe scenario in 2002-3. Or our favorite Michael clarke, who had bad fall out with model lara bingle and he left the tour. Clarke is single again after other multiple break ups post retirement,

[rvd]

What a silly take.

Covid ruined his rhythm.

The year before he averaged 68 in Tests, 59 in ODIs, and 77 in T20Is. He was married then too.

After the pandemic, he went downhill. When you combine aging and the pandemic, he hasn't been able to come out of it. It has nothing to do with his marriage.

If marriage was that big of a deal, all of the top players would be single men. Steve Smith, Labuschagne, Cummins, Root, Williamson, etc. are all married and most of them have kids too. Even India's legends throughout history were married men with children.

This is exactly it. No coincidence that Kohli has repeatedly talked about bubble fatigue and mental health

[Proactive_]

I know it's a CRAZY thought but how about the proposition that teams have generally started figuring him out and he hasn't really done much to stay ahead of his competition? I mean how many times have we seen him get out in the same fashion behind the stumps in the last year alone? This is professional sport we are talking about.

It's amusing that everything under the sun including the BCCI, Ganguly, Jay Shah, Rohit Sharma, Rahul Dravid, Covid, Scheduling and even his own wife can be blamed for Kohli's diminishing returns but not his own inability to fulfill his obligations as a full time sportsman. How about criticize him for being out of form for 15 tests and make him play under the pump to keep his spot the way the likes of Pujara and Rahane have been playing for the last year (with similar performances to Kohli)?

It's the Indian superstar culture coming to the fore again where the "golden boy" can never be culpable and the whole world has to accommodate to make sure the superstar feels at ease. The BCCI has thankfully taken the first steps to get rid of this malice by kicking Kohli out of captaincy, hopefully they'll continue doing so until performances supersede reputations in the Indian cricketing setup.

[Varun]

Quoting Shoaib Akhtar for truth.

[Varun]

It's not a regular marriage, keep in mind. It's marriage to a fellow celebrity.

[Savak]

I know it's a CRAZY thought but how about the proposition that teams have generally started figuring him out and he hasn't really done much to stay ahead of his competition? I mean how many times have we seen him get out in the same fashion behind the stumps in the last year alone? This is professional sport we are talking about.

It's amusing that everything under the sun including the BCCI, Ganguly, Jay Shah, Rohit Sharma, Rahul Dravid, Covid, Scheduling and even his own wife can be blamed for Kohli's diminishing returns but not his own inability to fulfill his obligations as a full time sportsman. How about criticize him for being out of form for 15 tests and make him play under the pump to keep his spot the way the likes of Pujara and Rahane have been playing for the last year (with similar performances to Kohli)?

It's the Indian superstar culture coming to the fore again where the "golden boy" can never be culpable and the whole world has to accommodate to make sure the superstar feels at ease. The BCCI has thankfully taken the first steps to get rid of this malice by kicking Kohli out of captaincy, hopefully they'll continue doing so until performances supersede reputations in the Indian cricketing setup.

Don't think it's because teams have started to figure him out, he has got loads of fifties in ODI and T20 cricket in the last 2 years.

However the biggest difference in the last 2 years has been that he is now carrying the body language of a happy, content with whatever he has achieved cricketer wheras the pre 2019 Kohli was actually hungry to score big and to lead India to wins and if he would get out cheaply or scoring an inconsequential fifty he would curse himself but we just don't see that in him anymore.

His repeated modes of dismissals clearly show that he has been cutting plenty of corners in the net unlike pre 2019.

[MenInG]

India batter Virat Kohli on Monday said that he along with his wife Anushka Sharma have been caught off-guard after images of their daughter Vamika went viral on social media. As India and South Africa locked horns in the third and final ODI on Sunday, Vamika was seen alongside Anushka in the stands, and the images went viral on social media. When Kohli brought up his half-century, Kohli gestured towards Vamika and he celebrated with a cradle gesture.

"Hi guys, we realize that our daughter's images were captured at the stadium yesterday and widely shared thereafter. We want to inform everyone that we were caught off guard and did not know that the camera was on us," Kohli said in his Instagram story.

"Our stance and request on the matter stays the same. We would really appreciate it if Vamika's images are not clicked/published for reasons we have explained earlier. Thank you," he added.

This was the first time that Vamika's photos were seen anywhere, and immediately the images started doing the rounds on social media.

Earlier, Kohli and Anushka had urged the media to not click Vamika's pictures to maintain the couple's privacy.

This is the reason many fans on social media criticized the broadcaster for showing Vamika on live television.

For the unversed, Virat and Anushka had earlier issued an official statement revealing the reason for keeping Vamika away from the limelight, "We have decided as a couple to not expose our child to social media before she has an understanding of what social media is and can make her own choice."

Recently, Anushka had also penned a note thanking the camerapersons for not clicking pictures of their daughter Vamika while they accompany Virat for his cricket match tours.

India lost the third and final ODI against South Africa by four wins and as a result, South Africa clinched the series 3-0.

https://sports.ndtv.com/south-africa...rd-odi-2726099

[ask_analyse_act]

Totally agree with Shoaib. Image if him or IK got married during their playing careers, I genuinely don't think they would have had the same success.

Both of them dragged their playing days like a rickshaw at the end.. Should have retired at least few years before they actually did.. IK being an allrounder and captain can be an exception but he achieved great heights with his passion but still on the other side is a person with few broken marriages..

Should have retired when they see themselves as a burden.. for a fast bowler 20 -30 is their prime with sheer pace, after that they can survive for few more years only if they know how to swing like Wasim so can extend career from 1996 to 2003 or bowl like Asif and know how to get wickets.

[jeeteshssaxena]

I know it's a CRAZY thought but how about the proposition that teams have generally started figuring him out and he hasn't really done much to stay ahead of his competition? I mean how many times have we seen him get out in the same fashion behind the stumps in the last year alone? This is professional sport we are talking about.

It's amusing that everything under the sun including the BCCI, Ganguly, Jay Shah, Rohit Sharma, Rahul Dravid, Covid, Scheduling and even his own wife can be blamed for Kohli's diminishing returns but not his own inability to fulfill his obligations as a full time sportsman. How about criticize him for being out of form for 15 tests and make him play under the pump to keep his spot the way the likes of Pujara and Rahane have been playing for the last year (with similar performances to Kohli)?

It's the Indian superstar culture coming to the fore again where the "golden boy" can never be culpable and the whole world has to accommodate to make sure the superstar feels at ease. The BCCI has thankfully taken the first steps to get rid of this malice by kicking Kohli out of captaincy, hopefully they'll continue doing so until performances supersede reputations in the Indian cricketing setup.

Oh, so the teams have figured him out after playing 10 years of international cricket.
I mean, do you hear yourself

Also what about Steve Smith getting out to the same leg side trap and averaging in 30s since ashes 2019, have the teams figured him out too?

Figured him out lol, as if he is some mystery spinner who had one good year.

[DeadlyVenom]

Rumour has it that Don Bradman would still be playing to this day had he not got married.

[James]

Shoaib could be on to something here.

I can definitely understand the point of view that a sportsman such as a cricketer would enjoy a certain stage of his career more and feel more highly motivated when he gets to be “one of the lads” and finds himself living it up on long tours with no attachments, no sense of guilt, and no responsibilities beyond what he is expected to deliver on the field of play.

Many cricketers have succeeded being married with children, but it has mentally affected many others very negatively in terms of their performance and there is greater distraction and homesickness, and a more relaxed and less intense approach at times.

[Forward Defensive Push]

I hope some of our ex cricketers graduate to something better than trolls...

[pillionrider]

He added being the captain of a national team is an added responsibility enough and a player must focus on the job, getting married can wait. “ As a captain, you have to think a lot. I am not against marriage but I believe play while playing, there shouldn’t be much pressure, play freely, pick up your things and play fiercely. I got married when I retired from the captain. As a Captain, you have to face the media, the brand, all the things which come with it," he said.

What do you know about captaincy Shoaib?

Pakistani selectors have made many notorious decisions over the years. But one thing they can be proud of is not making this guy captain, ever

[gazza619]

Let me correct Akhtar here.

Marriage didnt impact Kohli’s career.

It was marrying a bollywood A class celebrity which impacted him.

At least thats what the numbers say anway.

[WhenSultansBowled]

The whole fuss is quite ironic if you see at actual numbers. In past year or so, Kohli is still better than everyone except Root/Labu in tests, Babar in ODIs and Rizwan in T20Is.

Kohli is still scoring 50s for fun against all world attacks!

I see it as BCCI mafia vs Kohli, nothing more.

[YousafTheBeast]

What do you know about captaincy Shoaib?

Pakistani selectors have made many notorious decisions over the years. But one thing they can be proud of is not making this guy captain, ever

Shaiby can’t talk about captaincy because he’s never been a captain, so, using your logic you can’t talk about cricket because you’ve never played professional cricket.🤷🏻*♂️ What do you know about professional cricket, @pillionrider?

[cricketerB94]

Shoaib is not entirely wrong as the numbers tell the same thing, but the blame goes to Kohli. From what I see, Kohli's attitude towards the game has changed after the marriage. He is able to score 50s, but not match winning 100s now, which suggest that maybe he has become lethargic or unfit. This attitude is what we used to see from someone like Umer Akmal as he had the talent and ability to score 100s, but it took him ages to score his 2nd ODI 100 despite getting a lot of chances in a fragile batting lineup.

Secondly, I have heard Kohli saying this a lot recently "I have nothing to prove". Ok, then just retire. Why are you even playing if you have nothing to prove?

[smkk]

Honestly, it’s kinda rude to call someone a jahil without doing your own research. He probably knows more about competitive performances than us keyboard warriors.

There’s studies that show that male tennis players have a higher DECREASE in winning percentage than a male tennis player that is single. If it can happen in tennis then why not in cricket?

I do not like to curse anyone online, but in this matter I have agree with the poster above. What Shoaib Akhtar did over here is work of a jahil.

First of all, marriage is a personal matters. When and who will Kohli marry is his own personal matters. No one has any business commenting over it, especially his co-players. Shoaib should have remain in his own boundary, and avoid talking about it.

Secondly, Kohli is not even from his own country. If Shoaib had picked anyone from his own country to comment or criticize, this would not felt like so much cringe as it is now. You must maintain some decorum while commenting about a foreign player's personal life, and in this scenario, from a country of your arch rival. This is coming out like Shoaib is desperate to get some attention from India.

Just because one can talk in English, does not make him knowledgeable enough to know how to conduct himself in everyday life.

[YousafTheBeast]

I do not like to curse anyone online, but in this matter I have agree with the poster above. What Shoaib Akhtar did over here is work of a jahil.

First of all, marriage is a personal matters. When and who will Kohli marry is his own personal matters. No one has any business commenting over it, especially his co-players. Shoaib should have remain in his own boundary, and avoid talking about it.

Secondly, Kohli is not even from his own country. If Shoaib had picked anyone from his own country to comment or criticize, this would not felt like so much cringe as it is now. You must maintain some decorum while commenting about a foreign player's personal life, and in this scenario, from a country of your arch rival. This is coming out like Shoaib is desperate to get some attention from India.

Just because one can talk in English, does not make him knowledgeable enough to know how to conduct himself in everyday life.

The reason why Shaiby talks about Indian players and their personal lives is because majority of his viewers are Indian. Those Indian viewers want to hear the opinions of Shaiby about their own cricketers, so he’s just giving them what they want to hear.

So, are those researchers “jahil” too? Why do research on athletes and the effect marriage has on their career? Should those researchers mind their own business too?

[smkk]

The reason why Shaiby talks about Indian players and their personal lives is because majority of his viewers are Indian. Those Indian viewers want to hear the opinions of Shaiby about their own cricketers, so he’s just giving them what they want to hear.

So, are those researchers “jahil” too? Why do research on athletes and the effect marriage has on their career? Should those researchers mind their own business too?

Those researchers are not from the sporting fraternity, they are coming from the health and psychological perspective. They are not targeting one single player, they are researching on number of players from different sports. Most importantly they have got enough qualification to comment on someone's mental health.

Secondly, it is not jahil that he commented on the effect of someone's marriage on his career. It is jahil that he does not know where to open his big mouth and where not to. Regardless, where his viewers are coming from, he is still a member of Pakistan's cricket fraternity and he represent Pakistan as a whole.

[Savak]

Don't blame Kohli for marrying whoever he wanted too. At the end of the day he is a human being and has the right to do what makes him happy, he is not going to be playing cricket forever. He can be blamed for not performing as expected and perhaps cutting corners when it comes to net sessions, practice, training and focus on the game.

[Mamoon]

Anushka is a dominating, control freak. She has been dictating Kohli since they got married and there is no doubt that it has impacted Kohli.

She made him leave his mother and relocate to Mumbai which has proved to be unsettling for him.

She made him return home from Australia after the first Test for the birth of their daughter.

She almost made him skip the South African ODI series for their daughter’s birthday before their was backlash in the media and Kohli stood up for himself for once.

She is going to decide when he is going to retire and how. She is holding him by the balls and Kohli doesn’t know what to do.

She is also at the centre-state of the latest stunt pulled off by this couple. They are currently throwing a tantrum because someone like clicked photos of their daughter in the stadium the other day.

They knew that if they bring their daughter to the stadium and Anushka stands in the balcony and make her face the crowd, it is inevitable that the cameramen will take a picture.

She pulled off this stunt so that it takes off some of the heat from Kohli but it is only making him look stupid.

Marriage didn’t impact most of the other great players because they married humble women who didn’t have gigantic egos and respect their husband’s careers. They didn’t stand in their way.

Kohli would not have been impacted by marriage had he not married an A-list, toxic feminist celebrity. He roars like a lion on the field but he’s nothing but a scared kitten at home.

[Mp812]

Anushka is a dominating, control freak. She has been dictating Kohli since they got married and there is no doubt that it has impacted Kohli.

She made him leave his mother and relocate to Mumbai which has proved to be unsettling for him.

She made him return home from Australia after the first Test for the birth of their daughter.

She almost made him skip the South African ODI series for their daughter’s birthday before their was backlash in the media and Kohli stood up for himself for once.

She is going to decide when he is going to retire and how. She is holding him by the balls and Kohli doesn’t know what to do.

She is also at the centre-state of the latest stunt pulled off by this couple. They are currently throwing a tantrum because someone like clicked photos of their daughter in the stadium the other day.

They knew that if they bring their daughter to the stadium and Anushka stands in the balcony and make her face the crowd, it is inevitable that the cameramen will take a picture.

She pulled off this stunt so that it takes off some of the heat from Kohli but it is only making him look stupid.

Marriage didn’t impact most of the other great players because they married humble women who didn’t have gigantic egos and respect their husband’s careers. They didn’t stand in their way.

Kohli would not have been impacted by marriage had he not married an A-list, toxic feminist celebrity. He roars like a lion on the field but he’s nothing but a scared kitten at home.

Hilarious but Probably true.

[pillionrider]

Shaiby can’t talk about captaincy because he’s never been a captain, so, using your logic you can’t talk about cricket because you’ve never played professional cricket.����*♂️ What do you know about professional cricket, @pillionrider?

Well this Shaiby said this about captaincy. Was he ever captain?

I got married when I retired from the captain. As a Captain, you have to face the media, the brand, all the things which come with it," he said.

[Ab Fan]

Thanks for your concern Shoaib but no thanks! We are fine with what we have and Kohli has. It is easy to go out on easier targets I understand Shoaib

[Savak]

Anushka is a dominating, control freak. She has been dictating Kohli since they got married and there is no doubt that it has impacted Kohli.

She made him leave his mother and relocate to Mumbai which has proved to be unsettling for him.

She made him return home from Australia after the first Test for the birth of their daughter.

She almost made him skip the South African ODI series for their daughter’s birthday before their was backlash in the media and Kohli stood up for himself for once.

She is going to decide when he is going to retire and how. She is holding him by the balls and Kohli doesn’t know what to do.

She is also at the centre-state of the latest stunt pulled off by this couple. They are currently throwing a tantrum because someone like clicked photos of their daughter in the stadium the other day.

They knew that if they bring their daughter to the stadium and Anushka stands in the balcony and make her face the crowd, it is inevitable that the cameramen will take a picture.

She pulled off this stunt so that it takes off some of the heat from Kohli but it is only making him look stupid.

Marriage didn’t impact most of the other great players because they married humble women who didn’t have gigantic egos and respect their husband’s careers. They didn’t stand in their way.

Kohli would not have been impacted by marriage had he not married an A-list, toxic feminist celebrity. He roars like a lion on the field but he’s nothing but a scared kitten at home.

From your post, you are making out as if someone held a gun to Kohli's head to marry Anushka Sharma.

[pillionrider]

Thanks for your concern Shoaib but no thanks! We are fine with what we have and Kohli has. It is easy to go out on easier targets I understand Shoaib

Shoaib has always been Bollywood-mad. I think he's a little sour. I remember him proudly boasting about hanging out with Salman Khan and Katrina Kaif to Rameez Raja.

[YousafTheBeast]

Anushka is a dominating, control freak. She has been dictating Kohli since they got married and there is no doubt that it has impacted Kohli.

She made him leave his mother and relocate to Mumbai which has proved to be unsettling for him.

She made him return home from Australia after the first Test for the birth of their daughter.

She almost made him skip the South African ODI series for their daughter’s birthday before their was backlash in the media and Kohli stood up for himself for once.

She is going to decide when he is going to retire and how. She is holding him by the balls and Kohli doesn’t know what to do.

She is also at the centre-state of the latest stunt pulled off by this couple. They are currently throwing a tantrum because someone like clicked photos of their daughter in the stadium the other day.

They knew that if they bring their daughter to the stadium and Anushka stands in the balcony and make her face the crowd, it is inevitable that the cameramen will take a picture.

She pulled off this stunt so that it takes off some of the heat from Kohli but it is only making him look stupid.

Marriage didn’t impact most of the other great players because they married humble women who didn’t have gigantic egos and respect their husband’s careers. They didn’t stand in their way.

Kohli would not have been impacted by marriage had he not married an A-list, toxic feminist celebrity. He roars like a lion on the field but he’s nothing but a scared kitten at home.

So, in other words, Shaiby was right.

[PakLFC]

Marriage enhances a man's life in many ways when he has a soulmate. Shoaib is talking rubbish as usual.

[Varun]

Anushka is a dominating, control freak. She has been dictating Kohli since they got married and there is no doubt that it has impacted Kohli.

She made him leave his mother and relocate to Mumbai which has proved to be unsettling for him.

She made him return home from Australia after the first Test for the birth of their daughter.

She almost made him skip the South African ODI series for their daughter’s birthday before their was backlash in the media and Kohli stood up for himself for once.

She is going to decide when he is going to retire and how. She is holding him by the balls and Kohli doesn’t know what to do.

She is also at the centre-state of the latest stunt pulled off by this couple. They are currently throwing a tantrum because someone like clicked photos of their daughter in the stadium the other day.

They knew that if they bring their daughter to the stadium and Anushka stands in the balcony and make her face the crowd, it is inevitable that the cameramen will take a picture.

She pulled off this stunt so that it takes off some of the heat from Kohli but it is only making him look stupid.

Marriage didn’t impact most of the other great players because they married humble women who didn’t have gigantic egos and respect their husband’s careers. They didn’t stand in their way.

Kohli would not have been impacted by marriage had he not married an A-list, toxic feminist celebrity. He roars like a lion on the field but he’s nothing but a scared kitten at home.

Funny but to the point.

[Mamoon]

From your post, you are making out as if someone held a gun to Kohli's head to marry Anushka Sharma.

Kohli made a bad call and he has to live with it for the rest of his life now. He might be very happy when it comes to his personal life but there is no doubt it has impacted his professional life.

Even Anushka’s ardent apologists cannot deny that marriage hasn’t been kind on his cricket career and I would be amazed if Kohli doesn’t realize this deep down.

[Mamoon]

So, in other words, Shaiby was right.

Yes, and I think he was implying the same but he obviously cannot directly criticize Anushka.

[LaLoco]

From your post, you are making out as if someone held a gun to Kohli's head to marry Anushka Sharma.

Actual gun does not need to be held on Kohli's head if you understand the impact of significant other has, it could be either positive or negative.

[MenInG]

Why is Kohli's personal life anyone's (including Akhtar's) business?

He is a human first.

[LaLoco]

Why is Kohli's personal life anyone's (including Akhtar's) business?

He is a human first.

Discussing factors that could have impact his captaincy.

If one's personal life has an impact on national team captaincy then why must we not discuss in a respectful manner?

[PakLFC]

Anushka does seem to control Virat much like Victoria does David Beckham. Even if so it should not effect his Cricket in any way.

[Local.Dada]

Why is Kohli's personal life anyone's (including Akhtar's) business?

He is a human first.

Virat and Anuskha are one of the most followed celebrity couples on social media.

Can you imagine how much attention someone like Shoaib who is a celebrity himself can get from a statement like this?

To put it into perspective, this statement has made through all Indian media both right wing and left wing. That’s a lot of traction from a random statement and will only keep him in the news.

Akthar is not a typical pehelwaan with no brains, he is a very shrewd businessman. In fact what I have noticed is 2 guys who most cricket fans make fun of for their brains like Afridi and Shoaib are in fact one of the smartest people to play for Pakistan.

[PakLFC]

In Shoaib we are talking about a man who thinks being a playboy is a great accomplishment. Virat should just ignore his ignorant rubbish unless he wants to mention how many matches our former fast bowler missed due to his injuries and childhood antics.

[Kroll]

On the flip side, the other Shoaib after marrying an A list Indian, got more focused and arguably better.

[msb314]

Yes, and I think he was implying the same but he obviously cannot directly criticize Anushka.

On the contrary Shoaib Malik’s marriage to Sania Mirza made him fitter, more focused and probably prolonged his career.

[moghul]

On the contrary Shoaib Malik’s marriage to Sania Mirza made him fitter, more focused and probably prolonged his career.

I won't be surprised if this cheap guy ( Shoaib Akhtar ) would say something about Shoaib and Sania also some day.

[ARK Rafay]

Anushka is a dominating, control freak. She has been dictating Kohli since they got married and there is no doubt that it has impacted Kohli.

She made him leave his mother and relocate to Mumbai which has proved to be unsettling for him.

She made him return home from Australia after the first Test for the birth of their daughter.

She almost made him skip the South African ODI series for their daughter’s birthday before their was backlash in the media and Kohli stood up for himself for once.

She is going to decide when he is going to retire and how. She is holding him by the balls and Kohli doesn’t know what to do.

She is also at the centre-state of the latest stunt pulled off by this couple. They are currently throwing a tantrum because someone like clicked photos of their daughter in the stadium the other day.

They knew that if they bring their daughter to the stadium and Anushka stands in the balcony and make her face the crowd, it is inevitable that the cameramen will take a picture.

She pulled off this stunt so that it takes off some of the heat from Kohli but it is only making him look stupid.

Marriage didn’t impact most of the other great players because they married humble women who didn’t have gigantic egos and respect their husband’s careers. They didn’t stand in their way.

Kohli would not have been impacted by marriage had he not married an A-list, toxic feminist celebrity. He roars like a lion on the field but he’s nothing but a scared kitten at home.

I think you are partly right. Marrying a celeb comes with a whole lot of pressure and expectations. Media wants to know about Anushka and she wants them to know her as well to remain relevant. But this isn't the case for Cricketers who's wives are not actresses.

[cricketjoshila]

Kohli's marriage to a bollywood actress indeed has affected his cricket.

Anushka gets into needless controversies and drags Kohli into it. Be it with Gavaskar or now with the child. Kohli's social media looks like that of a bollywood actor, endorsing everything under the sun and poking his nose in everything from cleanliness to festivals.

Kohli was first talked about, when he scored 93 in a ranji game, the day his father passed away, and after getting out he went to his funeral. In 2020, he left the team for the birth of his child and rumours had it that he was leaving the SA tour to celebrate her birthday. Shows how his priorities has changed.

Cricket is not bollywood. In today's cricket you need complete mental focus on the game and priortise it over other things. Many greats have talked about how they had to sacrifice family life etc for the sake of the game.

OTOH bollywood us filled with talent less hacks who get into the industry by sheer nepotism and lobby. There was a time when bollywood had the likes of dilip kumar, amitabh bachchan, rajesh Khanna, Mehmood etc. Now we have Salman khan who is macho man hulk Hogan in every film, SRK would still play the romantic hero and aamir will copy a Hollywood actor or a south Indian movie or Ranbir is the perennial playboy. Worse still we get Jackie Shroff's son, Sri Devi's daughter, Saif's daughter, Boney's son, Shahid's brother etc on a regular basis.

Before this generation of cricketers, Indian cricketers kept a distance from Bollywood,so that they are not affected by the glitz and glamour of the showbiz. Ofcourse there were a few exceptions.

Right now, bollywood and showbiz has connected with the Indian cricket team. WAGs of many indian cricketers are associated with the industry at some level and that rotten culture is affecting some players.

[ishtiaq_ctg]

On the flip side, the other Shoaib after marrying an A list Indian, got more focused and arguably better.

Difference is Sania Mirza herself was an active international athlete at the time of her marriage so she understood things needed to be done to achieve success at the elite level. Anushka on the other hand is a bollywood celebrity who probably has very little idea about what it takes to be an elite athlete, yet would try to interfere in things simply because she's a bollywood star.

[BunnyRabbit]

It's not marriage but the lifestyle that hurts a professional cricketer's career.

MJ Clarke was known for his celebrity lifestyle with his model fiance back in 2008-10. His form suffered quite a lot during that period. Then he underwent a well publicized break up after which he mended his ways and changed his lifestyle and became much more of a private person and a better role model. Rediscovered his form, all of a sudden his batting average soared from 44-45 to 50s. From an article I remember reading during that time, he even got married in private without telling anyone except his close circle then.

[Mamoon]

On the contrary Shoaib Malik’s marriage to Sania Mirza made him fitter, more focused and probably prolonged his career.

Sania is more grounded and has proper family values so it is different. Anushka is the definition of a fake personality.

[Corridor of Uncertainty]

Some may think Shoaib is a clown. But I think he is genius in his handling of media.

What else will get him millions of views and YouTube $$ if not statements like these.

He says what many others are thinking.

Personally, I think getting into a person's life is a pretty arduous route to take.

One can say his cricket started going down around the time of his marriage but one cannot say it is because of it. As an example, he may have physical issues, injuries, eye sight issues etc which may have started at the same time.

People making declarations on someone's personal life without having facts at hand is the reason why Shoaib Akhtar will always make money.

[WhenSultansBowled]

Kohli's marriage to a bollywood actress indeed has affected his cricket.

Anushka gets into needless controversies and drags Kohli into it. Be it with Gavaskar or now with the child. Kohli's social media looks like that of a bollywood actor, endorsing everything under the sun and poking his nose in everything from cleanliness to festivals.

Kohli was first talked about, when he scored 93 in a ranji game, the day his father passed away, and after getting out he went to his funeral. In 2020, he left the team for the birth of his child and rumours had it that he was leaving the SA tour to celebrate her birthday. Shows how his priorities has changed.

Cricket is not bollywood. In today's cricket you need complete mental focus on the game and priortise it over other things. Many greats have talked about how they had to sacrifice family life etc for the sake of the game.

OTOH bollywood us filled with talent less hacks who get into the industry by sheer nepotism and lobby. There was a time when bollywood had the likes of dilip kumar, amitabh bachchan, rajesh Khanna, Mehmood etc. Now we have Salman khan who is macho man hulk Hogan in every film, SRK would still play the romantic hero and aamir will copy a Hollywood actor or a south Indian movie or Ranbir is the perennial playboy. Worse still we get Jackie Shroff's son, Sri Devi's daughter, Saif's daughter, Boney's son, Shahid's brother etc on a regular basis.

Before this generation of cricketers, Indian cricketers kept a distance from Bollywood,so that they are not affected by the glitz and glamour of the showbiz. Ofcourse there were a few exceptions.

Right now, bollywood and showbiz has connected with the Indian cricket team. WAGs of many indian cricketers are associated with the industry at some level and that rotten culture is affecting some players.

Arguably the greatest Indian captain of all times, Nawab Mohammad Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi married an actress. And iirc the man was blind from 1 eye...

I still believe people are splitting hairs. Kohli is still a world class player. India didn't win key games because team flopped. Kohli delivers, 90% of times...

[WhenSultansBowled]

Some may think Shoaib is a clown. But I think he is genius in his handling of media.

What else will get him millions of views and YouTube $$ if not statements like these.

He says what many others are thinking.

Personally, I think getting into a person's life is a pretty arduous route to take.

One can say his cricket started going down around the time of his marriage but one cannot say it is because of it. As an example, he may have physical issues, injuries, eye sight issues etc which may have started at the same time.

People making declarations on someone's personal life without having facts at hand is the reason why Shoaib Akhtar will always make money.

I don't think Shoaib fakes anything. This is the way he is. Sometimes stupid, sometimes genius

[Local.Dada]

Sania is more grounded and has proper family values so it is different. Anushka is the definition of a fake personality.

Great, you are distributing character certificates for women just based on your perception from watching them on TV or reading gossip columns. Amazing.

[style_guru]

India batter Virat Kohli on Monday said that he along with his wife Anushka Sharma have been caught off-guard after images of their daughter Vamika went viral on social media. As India and South Africa locked horns in the third and final ODI on Sunday, Vamika was seen alongside Anushka in the stands, and the images went viral on social media. When Kohli brought up his half-century, Kohli gestured towards Vamika and he celebrated with a cradle gesture.

"Hi guys, we realize that our daughter's images were captured at the stadium yesterday and widely shared thereafter. We want to inform everyone that we were caught off guard and did not know that the camera was on us," Kohli said in his Instagram story.

"Our stance and request on the matter stays the same. We would really appreciate it if Vamika's images are not clicked/published for reasons we have explained earlier. Thank you," he added.

This was the first time that Vamika's photos were seen anywhere, and immediately the images started doing the rounds on social media.

Earlier, Kohli and Anushka had urged the media to not click Vamika's pictures to maintain the couple's privacy.

This is the reason many fans on social media criticized the broadcaster for showing Vamika on live television.

For the unversed, Virat and Anushka had earlier issued an official statement revealing the reason for keeping Vamika away from the limelight, "We have decided as a couple to not expose our child to social media before she has an understanding of what social media is and can make her own choice."

Recently, Anushka had also penned a note thanking the camerapersons for not clicking pictures of their daughter Vamika while they accompany Virat for his cricket match tours.

India lost the third and final ODI against South Africa by four wins and as a result, South Africa clinched the series 3-0.

https://sports.ndtv.com/south-africa...rd-odi-2726099

This same couple had filmed a person wrt some garbage incident, without his consent, & uploaded the same on their Social media not too long ago. That person's mother had written a painful note on her instagram, about how this had affected her son, who was in mental trauma as there were so many uncouth fans of the couple unleashed upon him & he was shamed nationally with his face revealed. The person was in the process of initiating some venture, which got stalled as well. She had warned this couple of Karma in her heartfelt post.
Today, this couple go berserk if someone intends to click or share their daughter's images, & cite privacy.

Ye bhi theek hai

[msb314]

Arguably the greatest Indian captain of all times, Nawab Mohammad Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi married an actress. And iirc the man was blind from 1 eye...

I still believe people are splitting hairs. Kohli is still a world class player. India didn't win key games because team flopped. Kohli delivers, 90% of times...

That was a completely different era buddy.

Cricketers and actresses were a lot more grounded with “family / traditional” values as well as being humble and financially constrained. None of the social media / woke nonsense we see nowadays

[Savak]

Btw the OP and some of the posters attacking Shoaib are being misleading, i just saw the interview where he made these comments and he was specifically asked by the reporter do you think Kohli getting married has had an impact on his performances. Shoaib politely mentioned that had he been in his shoes, he would have delayed getting married till the end of his career because playing for India let alone captaining India comes with incredible pressures and expectations, but he also politely concluded that it was his personal decision.

[Savak]

Some may think Shoaib is a clown. But I think he is genius in his handling of media.

What else will get him millions of views and YouTube $$ if not statements like these.

He says what many others are thinking.

Personally, I think getting into a person's life is a pretty arduous route to take.

One can say his cricket started going down around the time of his marriage but one cannot say it is because of it. As an example, he may have physical issues, injuries, eye sight issues etc which may have started at the same time.

People making declarations on someone's personal life without having facts at hand is the reason why Shoaib Akhtar will always make money.

He is going to upload an interview with Ravi Shastri shortly. Call him Jahil but the guy knows how to sell and make money

[cricketjoshila]

Arguably the greatest Indian captain of all times, Nawab Mohammad Mansoor Ali Khan Pataudi married an actress. And iirc the man was blind from 1 eye...

I still believe people are splitting hairs. Kohli is still a world class player. India didn't win key games because team flopped. Kohli delivers, 90% of times...

Married an actress is a very generic statement. The actress was Sharmila Tagore. A member of the very wealthy aristocratic Tagore family. Asia's first nobel laureate was from that family. The family has great contribution to business, literature, art etc in Bengal and India.The values and traditions she grew up with has no no correlation with the present generation of actresses.

[Savak]

Didn't Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh marry acctresses, models?

[cricketjoshila]

Didn't Zaheer Khan and Harbhajan Singh marry acctresses, models?

Zak married years after his retirement. Bhajji didn't play even a year with India after the marriage.

[MenInG]

Btw the OP and some of the posters attacking Shoaib are being misleading, i just saw the interview where he made these comments and he was specifically asked by the reporter do you think Kohli getting married has had an impact on his performances. Shoaib politely mentioned that had he been in his shoes, he would have delayed getting married till the end of his career because playing for India let alone captaining India comes with incredible pressures and expectations, but he also politely concluded that it was his personal decision.

Why did he have to "politely" make a statement about someone's marriage? He could have "politely" declined too!

[moghul]

Why did he have to "politely" make a statement about someone's marriage? He could have "politely" declined too!

That exactly is my question , no decent cricketer would comments on someone else's marital affairs, its too personal.

[Technics 1210]

That exactly is my question , no decent cricketer would comments on someone else's marital affairs, its too personal.

Nope. Read again, the question is whether marriage effects a player performance, this isn't getting personal but a rather high level that applies to ALL sportsmen etc from every sport. Heck ask anyone who is married and they will tell you that marriage does indeed change a person one way or another. This has got nothing to do with personal marriage affairs like how much time they spend together etc. Getting married is a changed in mentality. Fact.

It would be personal if Akhtar had said that Kohli should make personal sacrifices for the game which would bring his marriage affairs into question, but this isn't the case.

Remember, Kohli and his wife are public figures, so everything they do is scrutinised in public, they even post on social media etc, so no point playing the personal card anyway.

[gazza619]

Why did he have to "politely" make a statement about someone's marriage? He could have "politely" declined too!

The problem is that when you are giving interviews 5 times a day and then also have a youtube/facebook channel to run, you are bound to make more mistakes.

On the subject, Akhtar is right though. Kohli may be very happy with his marriage, but the numbers show it has been a disaster for his cricketing career and has also slightly tarnished his legacy.

[Cover Drive Six]

What a silly take.

Covid ruined his rhythm.

The year before he averaged 68 in Tests, 59 in ODIs, and 77 in T20Is. He was married then too.

After the pandemic, he went downhill. When you combine aging and the pandemic, he hasn't been able to come out of it. It has nothing to do with his marriage.

If marriage was that big of a deal, all of the top players would be single men. Steve Smith, Labuschagne, Cummins, Root, Williamson, etc. are all married and most of them have kids too. Even India's legends throughout history were married men with children.

This is exactly. Pandemic ruined his rhythm.

[PakEngFan]

Anushka is a dominating, control freak. She has been dictating Kohli since they got married and there is no doubt that it has impacted Kohli.

She made him leave his mother and relocate to Mumbai which has proved to be unsettling for him.

She made him return home from Australia after the first Test for the birth of their daughter.

She almost made him skip the South African ODI series for their daughter’s birthday before their was backlash in the media and Kohli stood up for himself for once.

She is going to decide when he is going to retire and how. She is holding him by the balls and Kohli doesn’t know what to do.

She is also at the centre-state of the latest stunt pulled off by this couple. They are currently throwing a tantrum because someone like clicked photos of their daughter in the stadium the other day.

They knew that if they bring their daughter to the stadium and Anushka stands in the balcony and make her face the crowd, it is inevitable that the cameramen will take a picture.

She pulled off this stunt so that it takes off some of the heat from Kohli but it is only making him look stupid.

Marriage didn’t impact most of the other great players because they married humble women who didn’t have gigantic egos and respect their husband’s careers. They didn’t stand in their way.

Kohli would not have been impacted by marriage had he not married an A-list, toxic feminist celebrity. He roars like a lion on the field but he’s nothing but a scared kitten at home.

In other words Kholi is choking in marriage life too.

[Technics 1210]

This is exactly. Pandemic ruined his rhythm.

Yet other players have excelled during the pandemic, Root, Baber, Rizwan, to name but a few.