From Vijay Mallya to Anil Kumble, 5 birthday wishes that didn’t come Virat Kohli’s way

Courtesy: PTI

New Delhi: Virat Kohli turned 29 on 5th November (Saturday) and wishes poured in from all over the world for Team India skipper on his special day.

Adored by his teammates, contemporaries, seniors and fans alike, Kohli's social media handles were buzzing with greetings and adulations.

Therefore, an overwhelmed Kohli posted a video on his Twitter handle to thank everyone who wished him.

However, there were five wishes that didn't come 'King Kohli' way. Here's why:

1. Steve Smith

It would not be an exaggeration if we label Australia skipper Steve Smith as Virat Kohli's biggest foe in the world right now.

The two were involved in an infamous and much-publicised war of words during the Test series that was played between India and Australia at the beginning of 2017.

During the Bengaluru Test, Kohli even accused Smith of 'cheating' when the latter looked towards the Australian dressing room before going for a DRS call.

Australia won the first of the four-match Test series but went on to lose the second and fourth, consequently losing the Test series 2-1.

On their most recent tour to India, Smith's men were defeated 4-1 by the Men in Blue in the ODI series and the three-match T20I series ended in a 1-1 draw.

2. James Anderson

During the 2016 Test series between India and England, pacer James Anderson sparked off a major controversy by stating that Kohli could score runs only on flat Indian wickets as they don't bring out his technical deficiencies.

On a day where Kohli smashed a career-best 235 runs – third Test double ton of the year, Anderson went on to add that Kohli would be a big flop on fast England wickets.

Kohli, whose leanest patch came during the 2014 England tour, would definitely want to prove Anderson wrong in English conditions when the 29-year-old will lead Team India in a five-match Test series in July 2018.

3. Mitchell Johnson

Another famous on-field duel of the recent times involved Kohli and now retired Australian pacer Mitchell Johnson.

During the Boxing Day Test in 2014, Johnson accidentally threw the ball at Kohli, while trying to hit the stumps.

Kohli, however, thought that it was a deliberate attempt from the pacer to take out his frustration on the batsman.

Although Johnson apologised immediately, there were a plenty of verbals involved and Kohli even went on record to say that he has lost respect for the Australian bowler.

4. Vijay Mallya

Vijay Mallya, the former owner of Indian Premier League franchise Royal Challengers Bangalore, made Kohli & Co. uncomfortable when the tainted businessman attended a charity ball organised by Virat Kohli Foundation in London during the ICC Champions Trophy 2017.

Due to the liquor baron's presence, Team India players were forced to leave the event earlier than they had planned to.

Mallya is presently absconding and out on bail while being wanted in India for defaulting on bank loans with now-defunct Kingfisher Airlines.

5. Anil Kumble

Former Team India head coach Anil Kumble quit the most high-profile cricketing job in the world because of his untenable differences with the skipper Kohli.

The day after the Men in Blue were defeated by Pakistan in the Champions Trophy final, Kumble decided to move on.

Kohli received a lot of flak for his strained relationship with the legendary spinner.

On Teachers' Day, Kohli thanked all the former and current cricketers who inspired him but MS Dhoni's successor did not include Kumble's name in the long list.