Virat Kohli is arguably the best batsman in world cricket, across all three formats of the game. Kohli is also one of the fittest cricketers in world cricket. Kohli is the benchmark of fitness in Indian cricket and he is inspiring young Indian cricketers to focus on their fitness along with technique and other things.
During the first couple of years of his international career, Virat Kohli’s fitness was nowhere close to what it is now. In an interview with former England captain Michael Vaughan, for Telegraph, Virat Kohli spoke candidly on variety of issues relation to his game. He also revealed the story that inspired him to work on his fitness.
This is what Virat Kohli said:
“Duncan told me once that he feels cricket is the most unprofessional of professional sports,” Kohli told The Telegraph after India won the second Test in Vizag to take a 1-0 lead in the five match series against England.
“You can have the skill but do not think you need to train as much as a tennis player. But I realised if you want to stay on top playing three formats in this day and age you need a routine.
“My training was horrible, I ate so bad, I was up until late, I was having a drink or two regularly. It was a horrible mindset. The season ended and I was so thankful it was over. I went home, came out of the shower one day and looked at myself in the mirror and said ‘you can’t look like this if you want to be a professional cricketer.’
“I was 11 or 12kgs heavier than I am now, I was really chubby. I changed everything from the next morning from what I eat to how I train. I was in the gym for an hour-and-a-half every day. Working really hard, off gluten, off wheat, no cold drinks, no desserts, nothing. It was tough.
“For the first two months I felt I wanted to eat the bed sheet when I went to sleep because I was so hungry. I was craving taste. I was craving delicious food. But then I saw the results. I felt quick around the field. I would wake up in morning and feel like I had energy.
“From 2015 I changed my training again. I started lifting, snatching, cleaning and dead lifting. It was unbelievable. I saw the result. I remember running after a ball in a Test series in Sri Lanka and I felt more power in my legs. It was, like, ‘wow’. This training is addictive. The last year-and-a-half it has taken my game to another level,” he explained.
