Batting maestro Virat Kohli on Sunday added another milestone to his name when he was named in India’s playing XI for the highly anticipated Asia Cup 2022 match with Pakistan on Sunday evening. Kohli has become the first Indian and just the second player overall in international cricket history to have played 100 matches each in all three formats of the game.
Kohli has now 100 T20Is to his name in addition to 102 Tests and 262 ODIs since making his international debut in August 2008.
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The first man to do so was New Zealand batter Ross Taylor who retired from international cricket in April this year. The 38-year-old represented his country in 112 Tests, 236 ODIs and 102 T20Is between 2006 and 2022.
In a revealing interview, Kohli threw some light on his mental struggles and how not touching the bat for nearly a month has helped him return to cricket with a fresh mind.
“This is the first time in ten years that I have not touched the bat in a whole month,” Kohli told Star Sports. “When I sat down and thought about it, I was like I haven’t actually touched a bat for 30 days, which I haven’t done ever in my life. That’s when I came to the realisation that I was kind of trying to fake my intensity a bit recently.
“‘No, I can do it’… being competitive and convincing yourself that you have intensity but your body is telling you to stop. Mind is telling you to just take a break and step back… You can neglect it by saying you are fit, you are working hard on yourself, and you will be fine because you are fit mentally,” he added.
Kohli said even his mental strength has its limit and he has recognised that.
“I have been looked at as a guy who is mentally very strong, and I am, but everyone has a limit, and you need to recognise that limit, otherwise things can get unhealthy for you,” Kohli said.
“So this period actually taught me a lot of things that I was not allowing to come to the surface. When they did, I embraced it. Yaar, there is much more to life than just your profession. And when the environment around you is such that everyone looks at you through your professional identity, somewhere you start losing perspective as a human being,” he added.
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