Fact Check: News about Indian cricketer Virat Kohli’s mother being seriously ill is fake

Hyderabad: Due to personal reasons, star Indian batsman Viral Kohli pulled out the first two tests against England. Rohit Sharma led the side and faced a humiliating defeat on January 28 in the opening first test by falling behind by 28 runs while chasing 231 to win.

Several social media users attributed Kohli’s absence to his mother’s supposed illness. “Update: Heard that Virat’s mother is suffering from liver issues and is serious, I hope not but if this is true my strong prayers are for his mother's good health. Parents getting ill is the worst pain you will ever feel. Really tough times for Kohli. Prayers with his mother. Hope she gets to the best of her health as soon as possible. Family over anything. I Hope Virat stays with Saroj Ji even if he has to miss 5 tests. I wish her speedy recovery, (sic)” wrote a premium X user, who identifies as a cricket journalist.

More X and Facebook users also shared the picture and claimed the same. The posts also carried a picture of Kohli with his mother. Click here, here, here and here to view the posts.

Fact Check

NewsMeter found that the claim of Kohli’s mother being ill is false.

We ran a relevant keyword search and came across a report by the Times of India from January 31, which said that Kohli’s brother Vikash Kohli on Instagram cleared rumours circulating on the Internet about their mother Saroj Kohli’s health, stating that she is ‘fit and fine’.

Next, we checked Vikash Kohli’s Instagram account and found the clarification posted on January 31. “Hello everyone I have noticed that there is this fake news about our mom’s health been circulating around. Let me clear that our mom is absolutely fit and fine. Also, I would request everyone and also the media, not to spread such news without proper information. Thanks everyone for your concern,” read the post.

Hence, we conclude that fake news about Kohli's mother’s health is viral on social media.