Indian team batter Virat Kohli is one of the most popular cricketers in the world. Not just in India, but during the Men in Blue’s international tours, whether in Australia or England, local fans and media eagerly await Kohli’s arrival, and it feels like it’s not a bilateral match between the two countries, but the home team against the former Indian captain.

When India toured Australia in 2020-21 and England last year, something similar happened. Kohli returned to the United Kingdom, and Leicester supporters were overjoyed to see him arrive for the four-day warm-up game.

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Kohli scored 33 and 67 in two innings delighting not just Indian supporters ahead of the postponed final Test against England, but also the local spectators, who got to watch one of the finest players of the current age in full flow.

After the game concluded in a tie, Kohli turned to Twitter to share a few photos from the game, as well as thank Leicestershire for a nice game and hospitality for a week. John Mallett, a Leicestershire and ECB photographer, was quick to respond after seeing the shots uploaded by Kohli himself on his official social media profile.

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Mallett was overjoyed and stated that it was an honour for him to cover the match and get those photos starring one of the world’s best players. “I’m really honoured that one of the world’s best players chose to share some of my photographs from the game with @leicsccc on his personal social media profiles. It was an honour to be able to take these images. Thank you for your support, VK and everyone at BCCI,” he wrote.

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As head coach Rahul Dravid stated, it was a good week for India in Leicester to prepare for the Edgbaston Test, and he hoped that the team hits the ground running because there is only one game and no room for error.