Tennis star Novak Djokovic has expressed his admiration for Virat Kohli, revealing that the Indian cricketer inspired him to start following the sport. Djokovic, a 24-time Grand Slam champion, admitted he was not interested in Cricket before learning about Kohli. He hopes to meet Kohli when he visits India soon.
“Yes, Virat is a friend and someone I, of course, respect and admire. He’s actually, to be honest, the reason why I started following cricket. I hadn’t followed it before, but through him, I started following it more. We keep in touch, and hopefully, when I come, I don’t want to say if, but when I come to India, hopefully, he can join me. We could do a little bit of tennis and a little bit of cricket, have fun, and just spread positive, good vibes while celebrating sport,” Djokovic said on Times Now ahead of the 2026 Laureus World Sports Awards.
Djokovic has won the Laureus World Sports Award for Sportsman of the Year five times, the most since the award began in 2000. In contrast, no cricketer has been nominated for the award in the last 26 years.
Kohli continues to be a prominent figure in cricket as the sport aims for global recognition. He is currently part of the RCB team, which is vying to keep its Indian Premier League title. So far this season, Kohli has scored 247 runs in six innings, averaging 49.40, with a strike rate of 157.32. He ranks third in total runs this season, behind Heinrich Klaasen and Shubman Gill.
Kohli is set to play next against the Gujarat Titans on Friday, April 24, at M.Chinnaswamy Stadium.