Virat Kohli asks Sanju Samson to check his heartbeat mid-Match

Virat Kohli played an impressive unbeaten innings of 62 runs off 45 balls, leading Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to successfully chase down 174 runs with nine wickets in hand and 15 balls to spare against Rajasthan Royals in an Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025 match at the Sawai Mansingh Stadium. However, the intense heat in Jaipur may have caused Kohli some difficulties as he took a moment to catch his breath on the field.

Netizens have several theories about Virat Kohli’s heartbeat check request

During the 15th over when Kohli ran back for a couple of runs off the fourth delivery bowled by Wanindu Hasaranga. Upon reaching the striker's end, Kohli appeared to struggle and asked Rajasthan Royals captain Sanju Samson to check his heartbeat. On the stump mic, he could be heard saying, "Heartbeat check karna. (Check my heartbeat)." To which, the Rajasthan Royals wicketkeeper responded, "Theek hai. (It's okay)."

Following the 15th over, Virat Kohli and RCB opted for a strategic time-out to allow the batters to recover and catch their breath.

After the loss to RCB, Rajasthan Royals captain Samson acknowledged Kohli and Phil Salt for providing the visitors with a strong start during the powerplay. Kohli and Salt had put together a partnership of 92 runs for the opening wicket.

“We knew they would come hard at us and I think they won the game in the powerplay. Credit to RCB. The ball did come on better in the second innings. They were really good,” said Samson during the post-match presentation.

Kohli’s fans took to the Internet to offer theories about what may have led the cricketer to get his heart monitored by a teammate. One X user shared, “It was extreme heat and he fielded for 20 overs + batted for 18 overs and while taking those 2 runs his heartbeat increased but moments like this makes me wonder we expect so much from him after all he isn't a robot and he isn't immune to ageing.”

Another follower shared, “sure, it’s 40° in Jaipur, he’d just finished fielding, thn sprinted hard but still whtevr. ngl in tht split second, it wasn’t just his pulse, we all held our breath.”