Before the records, Virat Kohli’s Pakistan chapter began in Lahore

Virat Kohli is now the fastest player to reach 15,000 ODI runs. But long before the records, the roar of stadiums and the "King" tag, a teenage Kohli spent a month in Pakistan with the Indian U19 team in 2006, and a Lahore family got to see the making of a superstar up close.

Muhammad Haroon, then a PIA official, was appointed Liaison Officer for the visiting team. His 12-year-old son, Haris, tagged along with a handycam.

"You are now part of our team"

When the players landed at Lahore airport, they looked a little lost. The first thing they asked for at the hotel was a phone, to call their families back home.

But the ice broke fast. "I was in my hotel room when three Indian players knocked on my door," Haroon recalls. "They said, 'We're here to take you to our team meeting.' I asked, 'What would I do in your team meeting?' They replied, 'You're now part of our team.' That's how close we became."

Haroon says the players were disciplined and serious about their cricket, but also thoroughly decent. "They were brilliant boys. Humble, and so respectful that I can't even describe it," he says, adding that Kohli was right at the front of the pack.

Dinner at Haroon's house

When the players asked whether they could eat out, Haroon had a better idea: why eat at a restaurant when they could come to his home? The entire squad was taken to his house, where his wife cooked for them. The players loved the food and told him they would happily return if they toured Pakistan again.

The team also visited a Lahore market, where the boys shopped for themselves and their families. In Peshawar, they wanted to visit the electronics market, but security protocols made that impossible. Haroon's solution was to bring the market to them, and Kohli picked up a few things.

Wins were celebrated in their own way. "When they won a match, they would dance and sing in the team bus," Haroon remembers.

Watching a champion in the making

Haris was too young to know he was watching a future legend. "At that time, it never crossed my mind that Kohli would become such a great player," he says. Ravindra Jadeja and Piyush Chawla were part of the squad too. But even then, one player stood out.

"When they went to practice, I used to watch everyone," Haris says. "He was the most energetic and always went the extra mile. He chatted with all the players, but he was very focused on his batting."

Haris had persuaded his father to let him ride on the Indian team bus, and he ended up sitting next to Kohli. Since this was an era before smartphones and tablets, he recorded everything on his handycam: the bus rides, the shopping, even the dressing room.

Haris remembers an "aura" around the teenager. "He was stylish, flamboyant, but dedicated, and always hungry for more runs."

The angry young man in the corner

The most revealing memories are from the dressing room. Even when Kohli scored well, getting out left him in a foul mood. "He'd come back a little angry and sit quietly alone in a corner," Haris recalls. "The dressing room would go completely silent, even though he'd usually scored well."

Then the coach would sit beside him, explain and guide him. "Sometimes he'd stamp his foot on the ground or hit his bat and say he wouldn't do it again."

Even a century wasn't enough. "He always felt something was missing," says Haris. "He wanted to do something better. Not just score more, but win the match for the team, and field well too. Whatever he did, he wanted to do it at the top level."

A letter that said it all

The BCCI’s 2006 letter to PCB chairman Shaharyar Khan praised the Indian U19 team’s experience in Pakistan

When the Indian team returned home, the BCCI sent a letter to then PCB chairman Shehryar Khan. It said the team had a wonderful time in Pakistan and were extremely well looked after. The letter mentioned Muhammad Haroon by name.

"It feels like a dream"

Two decades on, Haris still can't quite believe it. "If I'm not mistaken, I was 12 then. It was 2006. Even now, when I recall those moments, it feels like a dream."

And Haroon has one wish. "I'd be very happy if Kohli comes to Pakistan again and I get the chance to host them once more."