Indian cricket team star Virat Kohli rounded off his brilliant 2023 with the Pubity Athlete Of The Year award after he defeated Argentine football superstar Lionel Messi 78-22 in the final vote count. (More Sports News)
Pubity, they are an online community, with over 20 channels. Their Instagram page has over 35 million followers with their subsidiary channel - Pubity Sport - hosting an online poll amongst the legends of sport, that included Virat Kohli and Lionel Messi.
Other sportspersons in the poll were the likes of Novak Djokovic, Pat Cummins, LeBron James, Erling Haaland, Cristiano Ronaldo and Max Verstappen. The poll included one sports person pitted against other in a knockout setup voting system. It eventually came down to Messi vs Kohli in the final with the cricketer claiming 78% of the votes and the the title.
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Speaking about Kohli, he had an absolutely amazing 2023 with the bat. He recorded eight tons and 10 half-centuries, scoring 2048 runs across all formats. At the ODI World Cup, Kohli amassed 765 runs, that made him the highest run-getter in a single edition of the marquee tournament.
On the other hand, Messi claimed the Ballon d'Or in 2023 for his World Cup winning exploits in 2022. He helped his former club Paris Saint-Germain lift the 2022-23 Ligue 1 title, scoring 41 goals and as many assists.
Messi's highlight moment was in Qatar 2022 where helped his country Argentina lift the FIFA World Cup by beating France in the final. In the tournament, Messi scored seven goals and recorded three assists in seven games, that helped him land the Golden Ball for his exploits.
