Virat Kohli catches up with IPL winning captain ahead of start of AUS vs IND 2025 3rd ODI [Watch]

Ace batter Virat Kohli of Team India and former Australia opener David Warner were seen sharing a special moment before the third and final ODI on Saturday, October 25, at the Sydney Cricket Ground (SCG). The visual of the modern-day greats talking prior to the toss captured the attention of the fans quickly as they looked back on their years of exciting battles against each other on the field in every format.

Kohli and Warner's spirit was evident as they embraced and exchanged small chat before Team India finished their warm-up routine. The two players have played against each other many times in the past, through international cricket or in the high-pressure games of IPL cricket. One of the more memorable pairings came in the IPL 2016 Final, when Warner's Sunrisers Hyderabad (SRH) defeated Kohli's Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) for the first title.

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For Warner, the SCC meeting was especially meaningful, given that the ground had significant sentimental value, as this was the very venue where the Australian opener played his last red-ball fixture at the beginning of 2024. For Kohli, it was, however, the return to favourite ground(s), where he played his last Test at this venue earlier in the same year in the 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy. Before the match, Australian skipper Mitchell Marsh won the toss and chose to bat first, with the home team looking for a rare ODI whitewash over India, following their victories in Perth and Adelaide that made the series already won by the Men in Yellow to finish the contest on their terms.

After Kohli’s expected Test retirement that would happen in May 2025, Warner expressed his admiration through an emotional posting on Instagram for his final friendly opponent in the cricket 'battlefield'. "Absolute legend of our game... I will never forget our first match against each other when we were young players, and you had to fill the shoes of some great players from India, and you did not disappoint... Thank you for being you and getting the best out of all of us who competed against you."

Following recently making a return to international cricket from a seven-month break, Kohli certainly had a difficult series with back-to-back ducks in the recent Test series against Australia, but the image of him and Warner together generates a reminder to cricket fans outside the battle, the respect and admiration for the spirit of the game prevails.