NEW DELHI: Indian spinner Kuldeep Yadav had a memorable moment when he received an autographed jersey from Argentine football legend Lionel Messi during the latter’s visit to the national capital as part of his ‘GOAT India Tour 2025’. Adidas India shared images of the interaction on its official social media handles, featuring Kuldeep alongside fellow brand athletes, including two-time Paralympic javelin champion Sumit Antil and para high-jump World Championship gold medallist Nishad Singh.Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!The pictures also showed Antil posing with his javelin next to Messi, who was seen wearing India’s T20 jersey. Indian boxing star Nikhat Zareen and Women’s World Cup-winning pacer Renuka Singh Thakur were also among those who met the football icon. Messi signed a cricket ball for Renuka and an Argentina jersey for Nishad, adding to the special moments from the meet.
A known football enthusiast, Kuldeep has often spoken about his admiration for FC Barcelona, the club Messi famously represented for several years before moving to Paris Saint-Germain and later Inter Miami.Messi began his four-city India tour in Kolkata before travelling to Hyderabad, Mumbai and finally Delhi on December 15. In the capital, ICC Chairman Jay Shah presented Indian team jerseys to Messi, Rodrigo De Paul and Luis Suarez at the Arun Jaitley Stadium. Messi also met Delhi Chief Minister Rekha Gupta and DDCA president Rohan Jaitley.
Messi was handed a customised India jersey bearing the number 10, while Suarez and De Paul received jerseys numbered 9 and 7 respectively. Shah also invited Messi to attend the upcoming T20 World Cup. The tour concluded with Messi’s visit to Vantara in Jamnagar, Gujarat, before his departure from India.
