It's not a secret that Virat Kohli's nickname is 'Cheeku', neither is the story behind it. But the batting legend thinks it's MS Dhoni who made it famous, after which he started getting called out as 'Cheeku' by the fans.
"They call me 'Cheeku' like I am their neighbour or something like that in India," Virat had said during a past Instagram chat with former England batsman Kevin Pietersen.
Kohli's chubby cheeks and big ears got him that nickname during his early days in Ranji Trophy, when a coach compared him to famous cartoon character 'Cheeku the rabbit' in comic book 'Champak'.
When Pietersen asked Kohli about the origin and reason for his name, the batting legend repeated the story he had told before to many.
"I got this nickname from a coach in the Ranji Trophy. I used to have big cheeks then. In 2007, I thought I was losing hair. I got my hair cropped, and my cheeks and ears stood out. I got the name from a cartoon character. The rabbit in the comic book 'Champak'," he said.
He went on to add that it was Dhoni addressing him as 'Cheeku' while keeping wickets that made the name famous.
"MS (Dhoni) has sort of made my nickname famous from behind the stumps. In the stumps' mic, people pick up," Kohli said.
It didn't take time for fans to start calling Kohli 'Cheeku'.
"They will shout 'Hey Cheeku, one photo please', and I am like 'I have a name. You people don't know me? You can't call me Cheeku'," Kohli said with a smile.
Kohli will next be seen in action in the two-match Test series against Bangladesh beginning later this month.
