Everyone loves to compare the greats of a game with each other. It is a common practice among all sports and Cricket is no exception. Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and MS Dhoni have often been victims of such comparisons on and off the cricket field. Often these comparisons step out of their sporting nature and focus on other aspects of the players and recently an event that took place for all the right reasons has sparked debates amongst fans for all the wrong reasons.
KL Rahul and Athiya Shetty, the recently married couple held an Auction for Charity which featured some personal belongings of various superstar personalities from the cricketing world. This heartwarming event hosted by the power couple was named the “Cricket For Charity” auction and aimed at supporting the Vipla Foundation. The foundation’s mission is to provide high-quality education to underprivileged and special kids. The auction was held in Mumbai on Friday, 23rd August 2024. In total, the auction earned a net sum of 1.93 Crores on the night, which was a huge success, underlining the popularity and potential of sports to aid a social cause.
The event saw some of the most prestigious memorabilia belonging to some of the biggest Cricketers India has seen ranging from names such as Rahul Dravid, Virat Kohli, MS Dhoni and Rohit Sharma. Talking about the Charity event, KL Rahul told the TOI, “The proceeds from this auction will go directly towards supporting the Vipla Foundation’s special school for hearing-impaired and intellectually disabled children, a cause that is incredibly close to my heart.”
For those who are unaware, the Vipla Foundation was started by KL Rahul’s Grandmother, and the Indian wicketkeeper further talked about the significance of the foundation and urged others to contribute in making the world a better place one step at a time.
Virat Kohli’s Signed Jersey scores 40 Lakhs, sparks dialogue
The item that got the highest bid at the “Cricket for Charity” auction was a signed jersey from Virat Kohli which was sold for a whopping Rs 40 Lakhs. This wasn’t the only item from Kohli’s end that went big though, his signed cricketing gloves went for another Rs 28 Lakhs. Such is the brand value of Virat Kohli, that his signed Jersey alone overshadowed Indian Skipper Rohit Sharma’s and Former Skipper and Legend MS Dhoni’s signed bats which went for Rs 24 Lakhs and Rs 13 Lakhs respectively.
It’s an undeniable fact that Virat Kohli is the face of Cricket in India and his Brand Value is above everyone else. So it was an expected outcome that anything that Virat Kohli signed would go big at any auction. But still, many fans across social media saw this as an opportunity to debate amongst themselves and in turn, turn a blind eye towards the positive cause the charitable event stood for.
