Virat Kohli is leading the chart of top run-scorers in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) season. Opening for RCB, the right-hander has amassed 661 runs in 13 innings at an average of 66.10 and a strike rate of 155.16, including one hundred and five half-centuries.
However, Kohli’s strike-rate has been a topic of debate this season, with many criticizing him for being slow after the powerplay overs.
Earlier this month, the RCB star picked up a verbal feud with critics questioning his strike-rate in the IPL 2024. Subsequently, the legendary Sunil Gavaskar slammed Kohli, saying that the commentators were just responding to what they were seeing in front of them during games.
Ahead of RCB’s do-or-die match against CSK on Saturday (May 18), however, Virat Kohli maintained his views on external voices.
“Zaroorat nahi hai (Don’t need to react). I know what I can do on ground. I don’t need to tell anyone what kind of player I am or what my ability is. I’ve never asked anyone how to win a match. I’ve learnt this by figuring it out myself in the middle of the ground by failing from experience. It’s not a by-chance thing when you’re repeatedly winning matches for the team. For someone to see and analyse a moment and for another player to experience that moment in the middle are two completely different things,” Kohli said on Jio Cinema.
“I have never felt that I should go and tell someone not to say certain things about me. I know what I can do out there. Kisi se na koi approval ki zaroorat hai, na assurance ki zaroorat hai ki aapne accha khela. (I don’t need anyone’s approval, or assurance that I played well.) I don’t need these things. I have learnt this from my father very early on. I could have played for the state very early in my career through other means, but my father said only if you’re capable you will make it. Performance is my only currency),” he added.
Kohli then cited the example of MS Dhoni, saying that the latter was someone who used to remain unperturbed by what the rest of the world was saying about his tactics during the chase.
“People used to say the same about Mahi bhai (Mahendra Singh Dhoni). ‘Why is he taking the game to 20th over or 50th over.’ But how many matches did he finish for India! He’s probably the only person who knows what he’s doing! And he’s finishing the game from there. For me, that’s muscle memory. He knows if he takes the match till the last over, he’ll win the game. My mindset was different. I used to think let’s finish the game in the 49th over (in ODIs) or 19th over (in T20s). If he was batting with me at the end, then the thinking was different. He will take the game into the last over where the opposition team is shivering in fear.”
Virat Kohli also spoke about his unparalleled motivation to represent RCB, a franchise he has played for since the inception of IPL in 2008.
“I have a different motivation these days. Yeah you want to win. Yes, you have your trophies and medals. I have never looked back at those things even once. What’s special for a player is the connection you have with fans or franchise. Or the camaraderie you experience with your mates. That’s special, to experience it for so long. Not too many people get this. You can be sent away by the franchise even if you want to play for the same team. Playing for a different team is a very ajeeb feeling. I’ve never had to experience this, and for that I am very grateful. These little things.. the expressions on people’s faces when they see you, you cannot demand it from fans. It’s a very organic process. These things for me are of the highest value. Of course you want to play and win. But at the end of the day, I don’t think that’s what you’re remembered for. I don’t think when fans remember a player, they speak of how many trophies they have won or how many runs they have scored,” he remarked.
