Why is Nana Patekar popular on social media after Virat Kohli’s century vs Pakistan?

After India batting mainstay Virat Kohli smashed his 51st ODI century against bitter rivals Pakistan in Match 5 of the Champions Trophy 2025, famed actor Nana Patekar struck social media like a “bolt from the blue.” On Sunday, February 23, a blockbuster in Dubai saw both sides clash.

Cricket fans and Bollywood nostalgia combined to make the legendary actor popular. At the ICC big event, Team India notably defeated Pakistan by six wickets, and the Green Shirts suffered yet another loss thanks to a game-winning innings from the master of the chase, Kohli. As a result, people began creating astonishingly creative memes on a variety of social media sites, particularly X, the former name for Twitter.

When Kohli got the game-winning century, Patekar’s comments made the supporters happy.
The former captain of India remained undefeated at 100* off 111 balls throughout the intense match. Many admirers flocked to social media to engage in humorous discussions with Nana Patekar in celebration of this accomplishment. Fans used well-known quotes from Bollywood films, such as “Krantiveer” and “Welcome,” to explain Virat Kohli’s supremacy over his transboundary rivals.

Regarding Pakistan’s poor bowling, some fans invoked the line “Control Uday, control!” from the well-known comedy film Welcome. The outcome was that Nana Patekar became a sensation as the rivalry between India and Pakistan amused cricket fans on both sides of the border.

When contrasting the acting history of Nana Patekar with the batting legacy of Virat Kohli on the pitch, this is the ideal illustration of how Bollywood and cricket come together, or cultural crossover, to celebrate India’s victories in important matches.

Check out some interesting Nana Patekar-Virat Kohli posts of cricket fans here: