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Virat Kohli and Naveen Ul Haq finally buried the hatchet as the two cricketers shook hands and hugged each other at the end of the World Cup 2023 game between India and Afghanistan at the Arun Jaitley stadium in Delhi on Wednesday. October 11, 2023.
After India's convincing eight wicket victory, Naveen walked up to Kohli and shook his hand before the players engaged in a cordial conversation and walked off after a hug.
Virat and Naveen were involved in an ugly clash during IPL 2023 after which Naveen, playing for Lucknow Super Giants, mocked Kohli on social media.
The Delhi crowd resorted to chants of 'Kohli Kohli' when he walked out to bat and when Naveen came on to bowl.
Kohli then magnanimously asked the Delhi spectators not to taunt Naveen.
Gautam Gambhir, who was LSG's team mentor in IPL 2023, had gotten involved in the altercation with Kohli when he came forward to defend Naveen.
'You fight on the field, not off the field. Every player has the right to fight for his team, fight for respect, and fight to win,' Gambhir said after the Afghan game.
'It doesn't matter which country you belong to or how good of a player you are. The good thing was when we saw Virat Kohli and Naveen Ul Haq in between the overs, we can see that the fight has ended,' Gambhir added.
'I would also want to tell the crowd and fans that any player in the ground or on social media shouldn't be trolled or made fun of. You are passionate when you represent your team. It was a huge thing for Naveen to play in IPL for the first time coming from Afghanistan.'