Last Update on: June 15th, 2023 at 06:11 pm
Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) pacer Naveen-ul-Haq opened up about his fight with Virat Kohli during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2023. He said that the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) batter shouldn’t have said things to him and it was he who started the fight.
Virat Kohli and Naveen-ul-Haq were engaged in a heated exchange of words during the game between Lucknow Super Giants and Royal Challengers Bangalore at the Ekana Stadium in Lucknow. Their tiff was one of the main highlights of the tournament.
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As Virat Kohli was having a go at Naveen-ul-Haq, LSG mentor Gautam Gambhir then interrupted too which saw two greats of Indian cricket getting involved in that too. They had some harsh words to say to each other and were the main talking about.
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The duo even took a dig at each other after the game on social media, with Naveen-ul-Haq taking a dig at Virat Kohli with his sweet mangoes jibe after RCB’s loss to other teams. Even Kohli praised other team players after their performances against LSG.
Naveen-ul-Haq said that Virat Kohli started the fight as he didn’t utter the word. He said that he never losses his cool but if someone will say anything to him he won’t back off. Speaking to BBC Pashto, he narrated the incident:
“He shouldn’t have said all those things during the match and after it. I didn’t started the fight. After the match, when we were shaking hands, Virat Kohli started the fight. When you will look at the fines, you will understand, who started the fight. I just want to say one thing I generally don’t sledge anyone, and even if I do it I would say it to the batters only when I am bowling because I am a bowler. In that match, I didn’t utter a single word. I didn’t sledged anyone.
“Players, who were there they know how I dealt with the situation. I never lost my temper, when I was batting or after the match. What I did after the match is can be seen by everyone. I was just shaking hands and then he (Kohli) caught my hand forcefully and I am also human being and I reacted. If someone is saying something to me I won’t back off. I have had it since I started playing the U-16 for Afghanistan in 2010. I never badmouth anyone but if anyone does that to me I don’t stay silent. I give it back. You can call it wrong but that’s how it is. Be it a young player from the opposition or a senior team member, be it in a club match, playing for Afghanistan, or in the IPL, I play the cricket match with same intensity and I would back off when someone says something to me.”
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IPL 2023: “I was just enjoying my mangoes,” Naveen-ul-Haq on his backlash from the crowd and his sweet mangoes jibe
After the fight with Virat Kohli, Naveen-ul-Haq faced backlash on social media and even crowds at Stadiums teased him with Kohli-Kohli chants.
Naveen-ul-Haq said that it didn’t affect him as he wanted his performances to do the talking. He admitted that he didn’t want to drag the issue bug when Kohli took a dig at him, he couldn’t resist himself. He said:
“It didn’t affected me at all. I know how to shut crtics mouth. I don’t have to gave it back to the 80,000 people, I was just focusing on my cricket, I had trust in my abilities and wanted my performance to do the talking. Social media was on fire but I told myself that if I have reached at this level with my cricket than I can continue playing the game after the incident as well.
I never wanted to drag the issue on social media or any platform. But when the oppositon started to to say bad things on social media, I couldn’t control myself. I never took the name of any individual, I was just enjoying my mangoes.” He concluded.
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