Vishal Nishad is looking forward to facing his idol Virat Kohli in his debut IPL campaign. Signed by Punjab Kings, the mystery spinner was purchased at his base price of ₹30 lakh. He was unsold in the first round, but in the third round, PBKS raised the paddle. A huge fan of Kohli, he also wanted his jersey number (18), but teammate Priyansh Arya has already taken it. So he has gone for 81 instead.
During his glittering career, Kohli has often struggled against spin. Although he has shown improvements in his T20 strike rate against spin, opposition skippers tend to use spinners against the veteran.
‘I will face Virat Kohli twice this season’: Vishal Nishad
“I haven’t met him yet, but I will face him twice this season,” said Nishad, while speaking on PBKS’ YouTube channel.
“Off the field I will talk to him, try to learn from him,” he said.
“On the field — same attitude. I will still try to get him out.”
Nishad was an unknown player before the mini auction, but PBKS had a clue. His father is a painter in Madraha, a small village 13 km from Gokarhpur. He began playing with the leather ball only four years ago, and quickly became a key cog in the Gokarkhpur Lions unit, a UPT20 League franchise.
Former Uttar Pradesh skipper and PBKS scout Ankit Rajpoot vouched for him, and it paid off in the end, as the franchise signed him. Rajpoot is also the head coach of Gorakhpur Lions.
Meanwhile, Kohli will enter the IPL 2026 campaign as defending champions. Royal Challengers Bengaluru face Sunrisers Hyderabad in the tournament opener on March 28. In the first leg of fixtures released, RCB aren’t facing PBKS.
For Nishad, this is a huge move. Opening up on when cricket felt like a distant dream, he said, “There were days when I went with my father to help him with his work. On those days, I felt like just giving up cricket.”
His mother also asked him to quit cricket. “She said cricket is too difficult, too many people are trying. Leave it, do something else.”
“I told her — Maa, I will do this. I will make it,” he added.
