It was just a matter of a few hours before Virat Kohli's official Instagram account was visible again on Friday, as fans took a huge sigh of relief and flooded the star Indian cricketer's comments section with welcome as well as concerning messages. Notably, Virat's Instagram, which has 274 million followers, went missing, leading to heavy speculation.

None of Virat's posts was deleted, but the veteran Indian batter is yet to come up with any kind of clarification over the sudden absence of his Instagram account for a few hours. Notably, Virat has 1044 posts on Instagram and follows 283 users on the social media platform. Kohli's account returned around 8:30 AM, whereas his brother, Vikas, remains inactive. There has been no official explanation of whether the disappearance was intentional or the result of a technical glitch.

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Interestingly, fans reached out to Virat's wife, Anushka Sharma, on social media for clarification over the shocking development. The latter's Instagram account was flooded with queries on the well-being of one of the finest cricketers India has produced. Others are busy predicting the "real reason" why Kohli may have deactivated his account. Some of the fans were even quick to relate Virat's Instagram absence to his possible retirement from international cricket.

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As speculation picked up pace, memes soon took over. Several users linked Kohli’s Instagram disappearance to the viral "missing penguin" trend that had recently dominated social media timelines.

Notably, Virat hasn't been too active on social media over the past few years. The former Indian skipper explained the reason behind that, soon after fans criticised him for using his incredible reach just for promotions and advertisements. “Technology, when not attached to a goal, can be quite distracting. It is something I have experienced in my playing career. Luckily, I grew up in a time when you didn’t have this thing in your pocket (smartphone). It is much easier to keep it on the side," Kohli said.


Virat Kohli In Outstanding Form

Having retired from the T20I and Test formats, Virat continues to remain a dominant force in the ODI format. He has been in magnificent batting form lately and produced another impressive effort in the three-match series against New Zealand at home. India lost the series, but Virat's efforts, including a century in the final game, came out as a huge positive for the Indian team.

Virat was India's top run-getter against the Blackcaps with 240 runs at an average of 80. Before that, the 37-year-old smashed 302 runs in three games against the South Africa on the back of a couple of centuries and a fifty.

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