The AI chose three alternatives to the Royal Challengers Bengaluru.

Virat Kohli is the only player to have played for one IPL team since 2008, namely the Royal Challengers Bengaluru. Since 2008, the city down south has become his second home, and Kohli has never shown interest in playing for any other IPL team, despite having to wait 17 years for his maiden IPL trophy with Bengaluru.

To be honest, it is the dream of many IPL fans to see Virat Kohli in another IPL team’s jersey, but that is unlikely to happen ever. Therefore, we turned to an AI chatbot and asked for alternative teams that Virat Kohli should’ve played for; here are three teams ChatGPT suggested.

Delhi Daredevils

Delhi Capitals, once known as the Delhi Daredevils, should’ve been the team Virat Kohli should’ve played for, and it makes perfect sense. Given that Kohli is a Delhi-based player who, back in 2008, was also in Delhi’s Ranji team, he should’ve been picked by Delhi. There is no doubt that Kohli enjoys a supreme status at Bengaluru, but imagine him playing for his own city – his aura in the IPL would’ve increased by 10x.

Delhi Daredevils was an interesting mix. Their top three of Sehwag-Dhawan-Gambhir (all home boys) fired. ABD could only score 95 runs in 6 matches. Their leading wicket-taker turned out to be Yo Mahesh (16 wickets). McGrath picked up 12 wickets in 14 matches, Mohd Asif took 8 in… pic.twitter.com/5GI8L1Xc58

— Omkar Mankame (@Oam_16) March 21, 2024

Unfortunately, in 2008, the Delhi management placed their bet on Pradeep Sangwan, who was also a rising star at the time and was heavily backed by Virender Sehwag and Sekhar, the franchise's head of cricket operations. This incident was obviously a missed opportunity for Delhi, as Kohli went on to become a global superstar, but Sangwan did not. Had Kohli and Delhi come together, they would’ve won the league much earlier. Today, Kohli is a one-time IPL champion, whereas the Delhi Capitals are still pursuing their maiden trophy.

Chennai Super Kings

CHENNAI SUPER KINGS 🦁

🏆 25 Apr 2010 – IPL
🏆 26 Sep 2010 – CLT20
🏆 28 May 2011 – IPL

Some franchises take 2 decades, CSK did it in 11 months.

📌 Greatest era, no debate. pic.twitter.com/hTKLD6h8w6

— HarshitMahiRaina73 🇮🇳 (@RainaMahi73) February 6, 2026

The second team that AI chose for Kohli is the Chennai Super Kings. According to AI, given Kohli had made his ODI debut in 2008 and T20 debut in 2010, it would’ve been better for him to stay under Mahendra Singh Dhoni’s captaincy even in the domestic circuit. Chennai has been a successful team since the beginning of the IPL, and Virat Kohli would’ve become one of the crucial batters of the team who would’ve led the attack from the front. In fact, Dhoni would’ve found ways to use Kohli in better ways than he was used by the RCB management in the initial few years of the tournament. AI firmly believes his numbers would’ve been better in the initial three years of the IPL.

Kolkata Knight Riders

In 2008, when the IPL started, the Kolkata Knight Riders undoubtedly had a long list of superstars. However, the majority of them were established batters, and over the years, the team never had that one player they could consistently rely on. There’s was always a switch on and off sort of thing going on with the team and their youngsters. One cannot overlook the fact that under Sourav Ganguly’s captaincy, KKR struggled, given that T20 was not a format Ganguly was accustomed to.

KKR Full-Time Captains
Gautam Gambhir: 7 Years (2011–2017)

Dinesh Karthik: 2.5 Years (2018, 2019, and shared 2020)

Sourav Ganguly: 2 Years (2008 & 2010)

Shreyas Iyer: 2 Years (2022 & 2024)

Eoin Morgan: 1.5 Years (shared 2020 & 2021)

Brendon McCullum: 1 Year (2009)

Nitish… pic.twitter.com/mRNBZt6JPK

— KKR Karavan (@KkrKaravan) November 23, 2024

However, if Kohli had joined KKR in 2008, Ganguly, known for his understanding of players and their capabilities, would have groomed him differently. From there on, things would’ve been even better for Kohli under Gambhir, who is another man known for his tactical prowess. Not to forget, given that Shah Rukh Khan is from Delhi and so is Kohli, there would’ve been a different level of comfort zone coupled with his relationship with Bollywood star Anushka Sharma, whom he started dating in 2013.

There is very little chance of Kohli playing for any other franchise, but maybe one day, he will turn to Delhi before his IPL retirement as a tribute to his city and the fans.