Along with reposting the video, Kohli wrote on his Instagram page, “I understand that fans get very happy and excited seeing their favourite players and get excited to meet them and I’ve always appreciated that.
“But this video here is appalling and it’s made me feel very paranoid about my privacy. If I cannot have privacy in my own hotel room, then where can I really expect any personal space at all??
“I’m NOT okay with this kind of fanaticism and absolute invasion of privacy. Please respect people’s privacy and not treat them as a commodity for entertainment,” Kohli posted.
Aussie cricketer David Warner commented, “This is ridiculous, totally unacceptable. Was this @crownperth?” Actor Arjun Kapoor also wrote, “Absolutely unethical and uncool.”
The hotel concerned issued a statement saying it was “incredibly disappointed” about the incident. “We unreservedly apologise to the guest involved and will continue to take the necessary steps to ensure this remains an isolated incident. Crown has taken immediate steps to rectify the issue. The individuals involved have been stood down and removed from the Crown account, and the original video was swiftly removed from the social media platform.
“Crown is conducting an investigation with the third party contractor and will take any further steps necessary to ensure an incident of this nature does not happen again. We are also cooperating with the Indian cricket team and the International Cricket Council to convey our apologies and will continue to work with them as we progress the investigation.”
An ICC spokesperson said, “The ICC is incredibly disappointed by the gross invasion of privacy suffered by a member of the Indian travelling party at the Crown Perth, during their team’s pre-event preparation ahead of the T20 World Cup. We continue to work with event hotels and security providers to ensure that this remains an isolated incident and player privacy is fully respected at all times.”
Kohli posted the video a few hours before the team flew out to Adelaide for their next T20 World Cup match against Bangladesh on Wednesday.
Virat and his wife, actor Anushka Sharmahave been very guarded about their private life and in the past even requested the media not to share photos of daughter Vamika.
Anushka wrote in an Instagram story, “Have experienced a few incidents where fans have shown no compassion or grace in the past but this really is the worst thing. An absolute disgrace and violation of a human being (sic) and anyone who sees this and thinks ‘celebrity ho! Toh deal karna padega’ should know that you are also part of the problem. Exercising some self-control helps everyone. Also, if this is happening in your bedroom then where is the line.”
Kohli, who has 221 million Instagram followers, had in an earlier post thanked the staff of the team hotel for their “amazing hospitality and service”.