Indian cricket's poster boy, Virat Kohli, is known for his temper, but he is learning to keep it in check and handle situations more diplomatically nowadays. On Monday, when a female journalist asked him about his personal life and relationship with Bollywood star Anushka Sharma, he took it on the front foot and launched a stylish counter-attack that was clear without being brash.
In Mumbai to launch a new initiative to connect with his fans, the 27-year-old flatly refused to take any questions from the media on his personal life.
Asked about Anushka, Kohli retorted, "That's for none to know. I do not have to comment on it. How is your personal life and how is it going?"
He was also diplomatic when commenting on the controversy over Bollywood star Salman Khan's nomination by the Indian Olympic Association as the brand ambassador of the country's Rio Games contingent.
"That's not for me to comment on when I don't know the details. It won't be proper for me to comment on this platform," he flatly said.
Talking about his initiative 'FanBox', he said, "It's an important opportunity for the fans to interact with me and the content will also be most exclusive, not available on other social media platforms," said the cricketer about the digital initiative that connects him with the fans.
'Flying Sikh' Milkha Singh and Olympic medalists - two-time podium-finisher Sushil Kumar and Yogeshwar Dutt - have opposed the move of the IOA to nominate Khan as the goodwill ambassador of the Indian contingent to Rio yesterday.
Costing Rs 16,999 annually, the 'Virat FanBox' claimed to offer a direct and unprecedented access to the star cricketer, both online and in real-life, and comes loaded with, among other things, a state-of-the-art smartphone carrying the cricketer's emblem, designed and manufactured by "Motorola".