Former England captain and all-rounder Kevin Pietersen is one of the opinion that Team India star batter Virat Kohli is much bigger star than football legend David Beckham.
Kohli and Beckham are among the most popular athletes in the world. Two legends of respective sports met each other during the semifinal between India and New Zealand at Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, where Virat Kohli achieved the feat of becoming the first batter to record 50 centuries in ODI Cricket.
Speaking to talkSport, Kevin Pietersen emphasized how Virat Kohli has to deal with the pressure and expectations throughout his career. He added that life of cricketers like Kohli, Sachin Tendulkar and MS Dhoni are different from other athletes, given their massive fan following and stardom in India
"You guys are covering football for a very long time and you know about David Beckham’s stature in England. Multiply that by a thousand and that’s what Kohli’s life is in India. He can’t do anything. Sachin Tendulkar, MS Dhoni and Virat Kohli are living a completely different life over here in India." Former England captain said.
"Virat carries a weight of expectations of a billion people when he walks out to bat or field. He is dealing with it in a remarkable way." he added.
Meanwhile, Virat Kohli has been ruled out of Two tests against England as he returned home due to personal reasons. Royal Challengers Bangalore batter Rajat Patidar has been added to the squad as a replacement for Former India captain.
