Virat Kohli folds hands in front of Rahul Dravid, hugs him in reunion before RR vs RCB IPL showdown

When India won the T20 World Cup, beating South Africa in the final in Barbados last year, then-head coach Rahul Dravid gave a challenge to Virat Kohli. "All three white ticked off, one red to go, tick it,” Dravid told Kohli inside India's dressing room amid the celebrations, referring to Kohli's ODI World Cup, Champions Trophy and T20 World Cup titles. The only trophy missing was the World Test Championship. Since then, a lot has changed in Indian cricket. Dravid is no longer the head coach, and Kohli, after retiring from T20Is, has added another Champions Trophy title to his cabinet, but the bond between them is as strong as ever.

Dravid and Kohli reunited as opponents before the IPL 2025 match between Rajasthan Royals and the Royal Challengers Bengaluru at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium in Jaipur. Dravid, who has been attending RR's training session and matches in a wheelchair due to a fracture on his left leg, was pleasantly surprised when RCB's Kohli walked up to him during a practice session on Saturday afternoon.

Kohli was seen walking up to Dravid with a big smile on his face. The former India captain then hugged his ex-coach and broke into another round of laughter. It appeared that Kohli was sharing a joke, which left Dravid and RR captain Sanju Samson in splits. In a couple of videos shared by RR on their social media handles, Kohli was also seen folding his hands in a gesture of greeting for Dravid.

Dravid and Kohli have been very close for a long time. Between 2021 and 2024, the duo shared great camaraderie in the dressing room as coach and player. Their friendly interaction on the eve of the RCB vs RR match, which involved hugs, jokes, laughter and a bit of Kohli antics with folded hands, was a testimony to the bond that they share

Virat Kohli to fave Jofra Archer test

Openers Phil Salt and Virat Kohli will brace for a fiery showdown against thunderbolts from express pacer Jofra Archer. Both teams are heading into the contest, smarting from defeats. While RCB went down to Delhi Capitals by six wickets, RR were blown away by Gujarat Titans in a 58-run drubbing.

RCB, with three wins from five matches, are placed in the top half of the table at fourth, while RR, with a win less in as many games, are languishing at number seven.

After copping the most expensive spell in IPL history on the opening night, British pacer Archer has managed to turn things around.Relentlessly bowling over 144 kph, the England speedster had batters gasping before knocking them over.

He delivered a match-defining spell of 3/25 against Punjab Kings, lighting up the game by shattering in-form batter Shreyas Iyer's stumps with a 148.6 kph thunderbolt.

He cranked it up to 152.3 kph against Gujarat Titans earlier this week, and sent back skipper Shubman Gill with a 147.7 kph in-swiger.

Come Sunda, Archer will be tasked with the responsibility of getting the crucial scalps of Kohli (186 runs) and fellow England teammate Salt (143 runs), a pairing that can take the game away in a matter of overs.