AB de Villiers has confirmed that Virat Kohli came across as cocky and arrogant when they first met. Asked directly on The Prakhar Gupta Xperience podcast, he did not soften it.
“Yes. I think he’ll agree with that.”
AB de Villiers, The Prakhar Gupta Xperience, 16 October 2026
This time he went beyond a one-line answer. He explained where the impression came from and why it faded.
A rival sees the swagger. He rarely notices he is looking at a trait he shares, and that is what happened here.
Prakhar : “When you first met Virat Kohli, you thought he was cocky and arrogant. Is that true?”
AB de Villiers: “Yes. I think he’ll agree with that.”
“He came across as overly confident. He had a lot to prove when he was younger.”
“You need that kind of confidence and self-belief to achieve great success.”
— The Prakhar Gupta Xperience (@pgxpodcast) October 16, 2026
De Villiers said the arrogance was a misreading of Kohli’s confidence.
“Just a high level of confidence and he’s always played his cricket that way. It gets misinterpreted sometimes and in my case that’s what happened as well.”
AB de Villiers, The Prakhar Gupta Xperience, 16 October 2026
He formed the view “pretty much on the field,” describing Kohli as a very confident youngster aged 19 to 21. In his words, the young Kohli “had a lot to prove,” and the need to look overly confident faded as he became more balanced as a person and a player.
De Villiers said the remark is always “tongue in cheek.” He added that this self-belief is exactly what great success demands.
He first heard about Kohli through a South African teammate.
“I heard about him through Mark Boucher when Boucher was with him at RCB in 2008.”
AB de Villiers, The Prakhar Gupta Xperience, 16 October 2026
The two then played each other in India vs South Africa internationals before joining forces at RCB in 2011, where they became close friends. Off the field, de Villiers says he found “a humble person who cares for others.”
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Opponents never meet the person. They meet the competitor: the stare, the celebration, the hard second run. A young batter who still has to prove he belongs plays at full volume, and from the other side that reads as disrespect.
The key line came later in the same chat. De Villiers said the two of them played “in a very similar manner,” both very competitive, both running hard between the wickets.
What he took for arrogance was his own instinct looking back at him. That is why the partnership clicked so fast at RCB, where the edge he once disliked became the thing he trusted.
He Has Said It Before, This Time He Explained Why
| When | Where | What he said |
|---|---|---|
| 2020 | Instagram Live with Kohli | Said hi in the tunnel but “didn’t trust the guy yet” |
| March 2023 | RCB video with Chris Gayle | “Quite cocky and arrogant” |
| March 2026 | Willow Sports | Said young Kohli came across as cocky |
| October 2026 | The Prakhar Gupta Xperience | Confirmed it and explained it as misread confidence |
In 2023 it was a one-liner that made Gayle laugh. On this podcast, he gave the fullest version yet: a young player with a point to prove, misread by an opponent who was just as competitive.
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