ViratKohli refuses to be a part of the victory celebrations after India’s win in the ODI series opener

The star cricketer was seen walking away despite repeated calls, then walking directly towards the elevator.

On Sunday, in the series opener of the 3-match ODI series against South Africa, India won by 17 runs at the JSCA International Stadium Complex in Ranchi. The win came after the humiliation of a second Test series whitewash at home in a year. ViratKohli led the way with his 52nd ODI century before Kuldeep Yadav and HarshitRana combined to restrict the visitors to 332.

ViratKohli didn’t participate in India’s victory celebrations.

After the match, as the Indian team returned to their hotel, stand-in captain KL Rahul was seen cutting a cake to celebrate the win in a video that has since gone viral. Kohli, who was namedPlayer of the Match, entered the lobby while the celebration was underway and saw Rahul cutting the cake. However, he refused to be a part of the celebrations, despite repeated calls. He walked straight past the gathering and headed directly towards the elevator. Meanwhile, head coach GautamGambhir and former captain Rohit Sharma were seen having a deep conversation in the lobby area, as they stood behind Rahul. Earlier, the two were also seen having a long animated discussion in the dressing room moments before India’s win in the 1st ODI, which batting coach SitanshuKotak joined.

Tense situation between Kohli, Rohit and Gambhir.

Reports suggest that all might not be well between Kohli, Rohit and Gambhir. The two clips, as mentioned earlier, and another in which Kohli appears to have ignored Gambhir in the dressing room have surfaced amid reports of a tense situation between them. A DainikJagran report claimed that while the atmosphere in the T20I and Test setups remains stable, the same cannot be said of the ODI dressing room.

Jagran quoted a BCCI source as saying, “The relations between GautamGambhir and senior players ViratKohli and Rohit Sharma aren’t as good as they should be, and there could be a meeting regarding the future of the two players. This could take place either in Raipur or Visakhapatnam, venues for the second and third ODIs.” The report also added that the relationship between Kohli, Rohit, and the selectors has become tense, something evident during the Australia tour in October.