NEW DELHI: What would MS Dhoni, Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma have looked like if they had played cricket in the 1980s? A viral AI trend on social media is giving fans an answer, transforming some of India’s biggest cricket stars into retro versions of themselves.The AI-generated pictures have given Dhoni, Kohli, Rohit and Shreyas Iyer vintage hairstyles, colourful outfits and classic 1980s settings.The trend has now spread across the cricket world, with IPL teams and several cricketers joining in and sharing their own 1980s avatars.
Cricketers embrace the retro trend
Yuzvendra Chahal kept his caption short and simple with ‘Retro mode: ON’. Shikhar Dhawan embraced the throwback theme, writing, ‘The ’80s called. We picked up.’ Irfan Pathan also joined the fun, posting, ‘Trend rukni Nahi chahiye. Let’s go back to 80s.’ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.
IPL teams join the 1980s craze
The trend has also caught the attention of IPL franchises, with several teams creating 1980s versions of their players. Mumbai Indians were among the teams to join the trend.Rohit Sharma was reimagined sitting on a vintage chair in a scene inspired by retro Bollywood, while Jasprit Bumrah was shown enjoying tea at an old-style Irani cafe.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.Rajasthan Royals also shared several retro images of their players. Yashasvi Jaiswal, captain Riyan Parag and young star Vaibhav Sooryavanshi were among those given 1980s makeovers.Kolkata Knight Riders joined in with images of players such as Tim Seifert and Angkrish Raghuvanshi placed in iconic Kolkata locations, including College Street and Park Street.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.Punjab Kings gave their players vintage makeovers, with captain Shreyas Iyer and Yuzvendra Chahal among those featured. Head coach Ricky Ponting was also given a 1980s look, taking him back to a time before he made his cricket debut.Gujarat Titans were among the other franchises to embrace the trend, focusing on captain and opener Shubman Gill. He was shown in different retro settings alongside his teammates.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.
Nasser Hussain’s hilarious reaction
The trend has not been limited to Indian cricketers.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.ID@undefined Caption not available.Former England pacer Stuart Broad also joined the viral craze, creating AI-generated 1980s versions of some of his former England teammates, including Nasser Hussain and Eoin Morgan.Hussain gave humorous descriptions of each AI-generated version, leaving his fellow commentators in laughter.
