An odd chain of events recently landed India batter Rajat Patidar in the middle of a police matter.
Patidar had stopped using the number months ago. After being inactive for over three months, it was deactivated and later sold to a boy named Manish from Gariaband, Chhattisgarh. As per NDTV, Manish bought the SIM from a local shop on June 28 and inserted it into his phone, unaware of the attention it would bring.
When the connection came alive, WhatsApp displayed a profile picture of Rajat Patidar. Manish and his friend Khemraj did not think much of it until the calls began.
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Virat Kohli, AB de Villiers on the Line
Within days, Manish’s phone started buzzing with calls from names any cricket fan would recognise. Reports say Virat Kohli and AB de Villiers tried reaching Patidar, but the calls went to Manish instead.
The real twist came when Patidar himself rang the number. He introduced himself and politely asked for the SIM to be returned.Â
"Bhai, I’m Rajat Patidar. That number is mine, please return it," Patidar told Manish as reported by NDTV.
The boys, convinced it was a prank, joked back that they were MS Dhoni.
Patidar told them the number was important as it linked him to his close contacts. When they still did not believe him, he warned that he would involve the police.
Within ten minutes, local officers were knocking on Manish’s door. That is when reality sank in and the boys realised that the call had been genuine all along. The phone number was returned to Patidar.Â
'Life’s Goal Complete' After Call from Virat Kohli
The episode left the boys with a story to tell. Khemraj proudly claimed that he got to speak to Kohli thanks to a wrong number.
"I got to speak to Kohli because of a wrong number. My life’s goal is complete."
For Patidar, it was an amusing distraction in a big year for his career. Only two months earlier, he had led Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) to their first-ever Indian Premier League (IPL) title, beating Punjab Kings (PBKS) in the final.
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