Virat Kohli has always found MS Dhoni by his side in the limited-overs cricket. No doubt with someone like Dhoni being your companion, things get easy mentally. The senior Indian cricketer has observed the game so well that he never stays back when it comes to sharing the experience with his mates, which actually helps them.
The Indian skipper Kohli recently mentioned that he has learned a lot from the former India captain Dhoni while standing close to him at first slip position.
The 37-year-old stepped down from Test captaincy in 2014 and limited overs in 2017. Dhoni had a fruitful leadership stint with India. Apart from failure in whites, the Ranchi born has done well in the other two formats.
"I was always someone who kept talking to him (Dhoni) about the game so even when I was really young before I was made vice-captain, I would give him my suggestions. Not in a way that I thought I knew better but I felt at certain moments I could probably see this thing that someone else might not be able to pick up," Kohli told Wisden.
"I love thinking about the game and that’s why I enjoy captaincy so much and I enjoy chasing totals so much – I love using my brain to figure out what needs to be done during the game. I’ve learned the most from MS, standing so close to him at slip so many times and just observing him at close quarters."
Kohli further talked about how every captain has a different mindset. The 29-year-old is someone who has always believed that he brings a change among his teammates. The passion and energy he carries in the middle, Kohli wants the same from his team members.
"I think every captain flushes in the mindset that he has himself to his team and I’ve always played my cricket with positivity. When I do well or I don’t do well, it’s not about thinking twice, only going forward. Results are a bi-product of that mindset. I believe in giving total freedom to the guys to go out there and play the way they want to, and to be fearless. You can make mistakes by being positive, lack of execution is fine, but hesitation is something that I cannot relate to myself so I would never want the players to play that way," the Indian skipper said.
When asked about the biggest challenges he has faced as the skipper, Kohli replied, "Not many. I’ve really enjoyed myself so far. I just wanted to play cricket at this level and now I’ve been given such an honor to captain my country, I cannot complain at all. It allows me to set the right example and work hard, so I can expect my teammates to work as hard."
