Virat Kohli firmly believes that he can play international cricket for another decade
Image courtesy of: ESPNcricinfo
India captain Virat Kohli has revealed that he has no intention of retiring anytime soon and added that he wants to continue playing international cricket until he is nearly 40.
The 28-year-old believes that he can prolong his career for another decade if he maintains his current level of fitness and avoids any serious injuries.
“Lot of us don’t actually know how far we can push ourselves,” Kohli was quoted as saying by cricket.com.au. “Maybe at times, without knowing, we are only able to realise 70 per cent of our potential.
“Therefore it is necessary to push yourself until you are done. For example, if I train as hard as I train now, I will possibly play for another 10 years.”
Kohli’s comments come after a highly successful tour of Sri Lanka, where he scored 161 runs, which included a century, in the three-Test series at an average of 53.66.
He followed that up with 330 runs, which included two hundreds and a fifty, in five ODIs at an average of 110.
In the fifth ODI, Kohli made history as he registered his 30th ODI century and drew level with former Australia captain Ricky Ponting on the all-time list of players with the most ODI hundreds.
Kohli and Ponting are tied in second place, while Sachin Tendulkar continues to lead the way as he scored 49 centuries in the 50-over format during his illustrious career.
The Delhi native also starred in the one-off Twentty20 International as he smashed a magnificent 82.
However, back in 2016, Kohli told The Telegraph that he had to learn about his health and fitness the hard way as during the 2012 Indian Premier League, he scored 364 runs in 16 games at an average of 28.
With Kohli failing to have an impact with the bat, he knew that it was time to change his lifestyle.
“It changed in 2012,” Kohli had said. “I had great tours to Australia and scored 180 against Bangladesh and went into the IPL thinking: ‘Wow this is going to be a great season for me’. I wanted to make it my tournament and dominate the bowlers. I really struggled.
“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.”