Duffy impressed by Virat Kohli's humility during RCB stint ahead of NZ-India ODIs

New Zealand pacer Jacob Duffy said on November 1, 2026 that his time with Virat Kohli at Royal Challengers Bengaluru left him impressed by the India batter’s humility, ahead of the five-match ODI series between India and New Zealand that begins in Auckland on November 4. Duffy described Kohli as down-to-earth despite his stature in India and said he welcomed overseas players during RCB’s title-winning IPL campaign earlier this year.

Kohli’s standing in India and his professionalism provided the backdrop to Duffy’s comments after training alongside the batter at RCB. "I got to see him yesterday. He was in the gym, obviously, so running into him there was cool, but he was awesome to me," Duffy was quoted as saying by Cricinfo. He added that for someone "who's obviously a megastar over there" Kohli was "so down-to-earth and sort of welcome all us overseas guys in RCB."

Duffy said the pair spent considerable time in RCB nets, often as the first bowler and first batter respectively, which gave each a close view of the other’s game. "He's got a great work ethic. I bowled a lot to him in the nets because he was always the first batter and I was always the first bowler. We actually spent a lot of time facing each other in the nets, so that's quite cool. But also from there, he's seen a lot of me now too, so he'll have good preparation," he said.

The pacer also welcomed the prospect of facing Kohli as an opponent after sharing a changing room. "It'll be awesome to play against him now that I've sort of shared a changing room with him as well," Duffy said, linking his RCB experience directly to the upcoming international matches.

Duffy enters the ODI series on the back of a strong finish to the T20 fixtures, having taken four wickets in the fourth T20I as New Zealand recorded an 87-run victory. The article noted he had conceded plenty of runs in the second and third matches before responding with that four-wicket performance.

On the 50-over format, Duffy explained why he enjoys ODIs and the different demands they place on fast bowlers. "Personally, I quite like ODI cricket. What I like about it is that up top, you get a little bit of the hard lengths with the swinging ball and stuff like that. Then you get a little bit of the hit and giggle near the end," he said.

With the 2027 ODI World Cup in South Africa a year away, Duffy stressed the series’ importance for selection and preparation. "We've also got the World Cup about this time next year in South Africa. That's pretty high on the priority list, I think. "Growing up (watching the) 2015 World Cup, 2019 World Cup, those, to me, are the pinnacles of our game. Those are the major events that I grew up watching and strived for and wanted to be there for those. "A year out from that, these games play a pretty important role in that. I guess we're trying to build and push for a case to make that squad," he added.

India and New Zealand will open their five-match ODI series in Auckland on November 4, when Duffy will have the opportunity to bowl to Kohli in international competition.