Zealand pacer Jacob Duffy is excited about facing Virat Kohli in the upcoming ODI series after sharing the RCB dressing room with the Indian star during IPL 2026Duffy also praised Kohli’s work ethic and down-to-earth nature
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New Zealand fast bowler Jacob Duffy is looking forward to facing Virat Kohli in the upcoming ODI series against IndiaThe two shared the dressing room at Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) during IPL 2026, but will now be on opposite sides when the five-match series begins on November 4.
Duffy had the opportunity to spend time with Kohli during RCB’s IPL campaign and was impressed by the Indian batter’s attitudeHe said Kohli made an effort to welcome overseas players into the team despite being one of the biggest names in Indian cricket.
“I got to see him yesterdayHe was in the gym, obviously, so running into him there was cool, but he was awesome to me,” Duffy said during a media interaction.
The New Zealand pacer also spoke about Kohli’s popularity in India and how different his behaviour was from what people might expect from a global cricket star.
“Obviously, for such a religious figure, I guess you almost say, in India – he’s obviously a megastar over there – for him to be so down-to-earth and sort of welcome all us overseas guys in RCB was pretty cool, so very appreciative of him for that,” he added.
Duffy said he was excited about the chance to compete against Kohli after sharing a dressing room with himThe two had also spent considerable time together in the practice nets during the IPL season.
“It’ll be awesome to play against him now that I’ve sort of shared a changing room with him as well,” Duffy said.
The fast bowler revealed that he often bowled to Kohli during RCB training sessions, as the Indian batter was usually among the first players to arrive for practice.
“He’s got a great work ethicObviously, I bowled a lot to him in the nets because he was always the first batter and I was always the first bowlerWe actually spent a lot of time facing each other in the nets, so that’s quite cool,” he said.
Duffy also spoke about the discussions he had with Kohli regarding bowling in Indian conditionsThe batter shared his experience of playing on different pitches across the country and explained how bowlers could adjust their lines and lengths.
“Certain wickets are quite different, so he talked a lot about the different lines and lengths on those kind of wickets and how he adjusts and how he thinks I could be adjusting on those ones too,” Duffy said.
The five-match ODI series will also be important for New Zealand’s preparations for the 2027 World Cup in South AfricaDuffy said the tournament remains a major target for the team and that the upcoming matches will give players an opportunity to strengthen their claims for a place in the squad.
“Growing up (watching the) 2015 World Cup, 2019 World Cup, those, to me, are the pinnacles of our game,” he said.
The ODI series between India and New Zealand starts from November 4 onwards.
