The batter made the headlines during the IPL 2025 for his immense love and affection towards the former RCB captain, Virat Kohli.
Virat Kohli, one of the stalwarts of cricket, has crores of fans around the world. But there is something different with Swastik Chikara. Though the 20-year-old did not feature in a single match for the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, he made the headlines for his immense love and affection towards the star Indian player.
The Uttar Pradesh batter has recently discussed his interaction with Kohli during his debut season with the franchise in the latest episode of The CX Pod – EXCLUSIVES. He refuted the speculations on Kohli’s attitude off the field, while describing how he was always there to guide the player and attain a few of his wishes.
“I was a bit tense and told that I would meet him for five minutes the next morning, and he said, ‘alright, let’s have our breakfast together tomorrow.’ I went for breakfast and he kept talking to me. Whenever I said that my family wants to meet with you, or my friends want to meet with you, he always agreed. He never showed any attitude, never said that, ‘no, I am busy now.’ If you could meet him in person, you would also appreciate his personality,” stated the youngster.
Chikara also noted the 36-year-old’s game-reading brilliance. He emphasised how the former RCB captain used to easily predict the match flow and help the team’s bowlers with his vision and guidance.
“He is also a brilliant reader of the game. Bowlers used to ask him for suggestions and he could predict what would happen, and you will not believe that it used to happen in reality. Cricket is a game of percentages and he always used to predict what would happen beforehand,” he added.
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From using Kohli’s perfume from his kitbag to trying to find a place near him during the squad photoshoot, the 20-year-old has built a strong bond with the modern-day great during his IPL 2025 stint. Chikara also spoke about the challenges that he faced when he did not find an opportunity to showcase his skills throughout the season, and how Kohli helped him to battle out the situation.
“As I was not getting an opportunity to play, I asked him what I should do. He advised me to continue to put in efforts and work on myself. Then it is up to the management if they play you or not, but you should always concentrate on yourself. He also suggested me to only think about cricket, talk about cricket, shift my entire focus to the game,” he said to Cricxtasy.
Moreover, the young batter explained how Kohli brought back his concentration to the matches, despite missing out on featuring for the Bengaluru outfit in the IPL 2025. He revealed that the former India skipper used to groom himself by examining how closely he had followed the match after a fixture.
“When I was in the dugout, I was not concentrating much on the match, thinking that what’s the point if I am not playing. But he told me to notice precisely what is happening, even if I am not playing the match. He said, ‘I will ask you after the match, where a player performed well and where he made some mistakes,” stressed Chikara.
Notably, this was finally the year when RCB broke their curse to claim the title after a long wait of 18 years. Kohli, who captained the franchise for nine years, once again became the top-scorer of the team with 657 runs in 15 matches, including a highest score of 73 not-out against the Punjab Kings (PBKS) in Mullanpur. With 71 half-centuries, he eclipsed the Australian great David Warner (66) and also became the only player to score 500+ runs in eight different seasons of the cash-rich league.
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