Indian batting legend Virat Kohli talked about the love he gets from Indian cricket fans and the hoard of nicknames they have for him. Kohli is arguably the most popular cricketer in India. In his nearly two-decade-long career, he has become a social icon of sorts.

In a conversation with former India opener Abhinav Mukund, Kohli revealed that he is aware of the nicknames fans have for him and the context behind them. One of the most used ones is 'Virushka,' combining Virat’s name with his wife and Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma’s name.

Then comes ‘Mahirat’ to signify Virat’s relationship on and off the field with ex-captain and legendary keeper-batter MS Dhoni. Finally, comes the 'Ro-Ko,' which comes from Virat and Rohit Sharma’s names, as the two legends are nearing the sunset of their illustrious India careers.

"‘Virushka’ was the first name that became popular in India; it’s a combination of my name and my wife Anushka Sharma’s name. You know, before these, with me and MS, they used to use ‘Mahirat’," Kohli said. ‘Virushka’ is special in a very different way.

That was actually the first thing that became popular in terms of, you know, clubbing names. After that, ‘Mahirat’ came about, like, ‘They have a bromance going on,’ you know? So, they brought it from romance into bromance,” Kohli told Abhinav Mukund for JioStar.

“And then with me and Rohit, we’ve played for so long that this now, this term, came up some time ago. And it sounds nice, it sounds good, and people are having a lot of fun with it. Also, now that we only play one format, even from, I’m sure, broadcasters’ perspective… it’s a very nice tagline to use: ‘Oh, Ro-Ko are here, they are back. It’s good. I mean, it’s got a ring to it, and it’s benefiting everyone, so it’s cool," he said.

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Ro-Ko will be in action when India takes on the West Indies in the first of the three ODIs on September 27, 2026, in Trivandrum.