Virat Kohli is celebrating his 30th birthday today and wishes are starting to pour in from all quarters for the Indian cricket team captain.
Kohli is a leader, on the field and off it. The youth icon does not only push and inspire his teammates but millions of others who consider him to be their hero.
Kohli has been in phenomenal form for the last few years now and has been on a record-breaking spree since taking over the captain's role from MS Dhoni in all formats.
Kohli's exploits on the field have been well documented as well as the multitudes of records he has broken and set over the course of his now-illustrious career.
But what about the man beneath the helmet, the son who shoulders the dreams of a billion, the leader of India's rise to the top of the cricketing ladder?
The journey started way back in December 2006, when a young 18-year-old boy from Uttam Nagar walked out to bat for his Ranji Trophy team, Delhi, hours after his father passed away.
Delhi were playing Karnataka and he was batting on 40 overnight. Most of his teammates did not expect him to come to the ground after the loss of his father, but Kohli has always been a thorough professional. He walked out and scored 90 to save Delhi from a follow-on.
Kohli scores runs for fun these days. He recently became the first Indian batsman to smash three successive hundred in one day internationals when he hit 107 against West Indies in the recently concluded series.
During the series, he also broke Sachin Tendulkar's record of becoming the fastest to complete 10,000 runs in the format. The India skipper blazed his way to 10,000 runs from only 205 innings.
Kohli became the 13th overall and fifth Indian after Sachin Tendulkar (18426), Sourav Ganguly (11221) and Rahul Dravid (10768) to join the elite club.
In fact, the modern great completed 1000 runs in a calendar year six times (2011, 2012, 2013, 2014 and 2017 and 2018). This year, he became the quickest to score 1000 ODI runs in a calendar year as he managed the feat in just 11 innings and surpassed the record held jointly by him and Hashim Amla with 15.
Kohli now also has 150-plus scores in ODIs four times.
In Tests too, Kohli broke a plethora of records in 2018. He scored 286 in three Tests in South Africa, he then amassed 593 runs in England and signed off with 184 in the two-match series against West Indies at home.
Kohli, in only 10 matches in 2018, aggregated 1063 runs and will play three most Tests in Australia in December.
King Kohli also completed 2000 runs in Twenty20 Internationals this year becoming the fastest to achieve the feat.
Kohli has come a long way now - from leading the country's U-19 team to World Cup glory back in 2008 to leading India's charge in dominating the world of cricket in all forms of the game.
As the captain of the team, he leads by example and his obsession with fitness is no secret. He spends hours at the gym, watches what he eats and expects his men to do the same.
He has a huge following on social media with most of his posts showing him sweating it out at the gym, which strikes a chord with the youth of the country. He is well aware of his influence on the youth of the country and that he is closely followed not only by the media but millions who profess him their hero.
Source: India Today