“The ups and downs of sports, this part of retirement, we do understand that the other person would understand,” Chhetri said on talking to Kohli.
Indian footballing icon Sunil Chhetri on Friday said that he had talked to Virat Kohli before going public with his retirement decision which he broke on social media on Thursday.
“I did talk to Virat Kohli before my retirement decision, he is very close to me. I discussed with him because we both understand that we would know this thing exactly the way it is,” Chhetri said in an online media interaction on Friday.
“The ups and downs of sports, this part of retirement, we do understand that the other person would understand,” he added, a day after he announced that will hang up his boots after the World Cup qualifying match against Kuwait on June 6 in Kolkata.
I’d like to say something… pic.twitter.com/xwXbDi95WV
— Sunil Chhetri (@chetrisunil11) May 16, 2024
The 39-year-old footballer is the most capped Indian player with 150 matches to his credit and is the country’s top-scorer with 94 goals.
Earlier on Friday, Kohli had stated that he and Chhetri had indeed had a talk about the issue.
“He (Chhetri) is a really great player. He actually messaged me as well informing that he’s going to do that. But I would actually say I felt like he is at peace with the decision, I have become very close with him over the years and I wish the best. He is a lovely, lovely guy,” Kohli said in a video posted by Royal Challengers Bengaluru.
The Interview you’ve all been waiting for is finally here. 🎬🍿
Mr. Nags meets Virat Kohli 👑, cuts a cake 🎂 to celebrate the 10th year of @bigbasket_com presents RCB Insider Show and relives their friendship over the years.#PlayBold #ನಮ್ಮRCB #IPL2024 pic.twitter.com/fzJ2EGZrFm
— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) May 17, 2024
Meanwhile in the media interaction on Friday, Chhetri said his decision to retire was driven by instinct and he would like to take a “sabbatical” after completing his obligations in the domestic circuit.
“The retirement decision was not because of physical aspect, I am still fit, running, chasing, defending, the hard work is not difficult, the reason is to do with mental aspect,” said Chhetri.
“I was fighting with myself, trying to think holistically, it came instinctively. One year I will be in Bengaluru FC, I don’t know how long I will be playing (domestic football), after that I want to take a sabbatical,” he added.
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