Sanjay Manjrekar claims Virat Kohli ‘very sensitive to criticism’:Former cricketer reveals India legend’s ‘cold’ response to outside noise

Former India batter and commentator Sanjay Manjrekar has made a bold claim in a recent interaction that Virat Kohli is quite conscious about outside criticism and is very ‘sensitive’ about it. On multiple occasions, Kohli has seemed pretty confident that he does not care about what people say about him on the outside. However, Manjrekar holds a different opinion and even stated that India’s star batter would often get ‘cold’ towards him at the toss if the former cricketer was critical of him. ‘Very sensitive to criticism’: Sanjay Manjrekar on Virat Kohli Answering a question about Virat Kohli staying quiet on social media in Sportstar’s Inside Edge podcast, Sanjay Manjrekar said, “That is very important to him (staying private).” However, further adding his perception to the statement, the former cricketer said, “But (he’s) somebody who is also very sensitive to criticism. Yeah, yeah, he, I think, gets to know about what’s being said about him, because I’ve had an experience with him as a captain and player. And suddenly one day I would find him very cold at the toss or whatever, and I would think, perhaps he heard something that was being said about him.” Although Sanjay Manjrekar further reduced the intensity of his claim, saying, “So, he’s one of those 1st guys who kept saying, you know, we don’t care about what people say and why, so he’s also very sensitive. But maybe it’s a good thing as well that if he hears that kind of criticism or something negative, that will just spur him on to get that next big hundred.” Despite Test retirement and recent slump, Sanjay Manjrekar praises Kohli Virat Kohli had a great start to the IPL 2026 season as he slammed three half-centuries in the first five games. However, failed to score in consecutive games and got out on ducks. Notably, Kohli is just active in the T20 league and ODI format and took retirement from red-ball cricket a year ago. Despite the former India Test captain’s absence from the format, Sanjay Manjrekar heaped praise on his leadership. Calling him one of the greatest leaders, former Indian player highlighted how Virat kept the player energy high even when the conditions were not favourable to the bowlers. Speaking about Kohli’s influence and leadership, Manjrekar said, “The thing to like about him as captain was when things went flat, he would still make sure the team was driven. I’ve always believed that the team wears the look of the captain. Under Virat Kohli, every player had to be like Virat Kohli.”