Virat Kohli's reaction to KL Rahul's Bengaluru 'my ground' celebration? India stars' argument in DC vs RCB at Delhi

Divy Dubey

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Virat Kohli's reaction to KL Rahul's Bengaluru 'my ground' celebration? India stars' argument in DC vs RCB at Delhi image

(getty)

The IPL 2025 has seen plenty of dramatic moments but Sunday's match between Delhi Capitals and Royal Challengers Bengaluru stood out for an unexpected reason.

Longtime friends and Indian teammates -- Virat Kohli and KL Rahul were involved in a heated argument during RCB’s innings at the Arun Jaitley Stadium.

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Before the match began, Kohli and Rahul had even exchanged a warm hug on the sidelines. But once the game got underway, emotions ran high and the atmosphere between the two stars quickly changed.

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Virat Kohli and KL Rahul's heated argument in DC vs RCB at Delhi

The confrontation took place during the eighth over of RCB’s innings with Delhi’s Kuldeep Yadav bowling. After the over ended, Kohli walked behind the stumps toward Rahul -- clearly unhappy with something the Delhi wicketkeeper had said.

More: Virat Kohli score in today's IPL match: How many runs did RCB star score against DC at Arun Jaitley Stadium in Delhi

Kohli was seen speaking animatedly -- using hand gestures while Rahul appeared to offer explanations. The disagreement continued even as Kohli returned to the striker's end.

It is still unclear exactly what sparked the argument and neither player has addressed the matter publicly yet.

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Was it because of KL Rahul's Bengaluru celebration?

Some context to the tension may lie in the teams’ previous meeting this season. When DC and RCB faced off earlier at M Chinnaswamy Stadium on April 10, KL Rahul played a match-winning innings for Delhi.

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After the win, Rahul teased the RCB players by circling the field with his bat -- signaling his connection to the venue -- Rahul represents Karnataka in domestic cricket.

The celebration may not have gone down well in the RCB camp. It is not confirmed whether this previous incident played any role in Sunday's confrontation, but it adds an interesting backdrop to the exchange.

Following RCB's victory, in Delhi, Kohli was seen imitating Rahul's celebration, so it was clear that it was in the minds of the RCB players. However, the exact reason for their on-field argument is not yet known.

Divy Dubey

Divy Dubey is a content producer for The Sporting News' India edition.