Kapil Dev warns 'over-fit' Virat Kohli of possible burn out
The World Cup winning captain called Kohli a mixture of Sachin Tendulkar and Vivian Richards during a book launch.
@aadyasharma20 by Aadya Sharma News 15 Feb 2017, 13:38 IST
What’s the story?
World Cup winning captain Kapil Dev has marvelled at Virat Kohli’s incredible levels of fitness, but has also warned the current Indian skipper of getting burned out due to his excessively strenuous training schedules.
"Cricketers are the least fit of all sportsmen. But Kohli has also set the benchmark for fitness. Sometimes I think he is over-fit. When you train that hard, your muscles can burn out faster. With that much fitness training, you're worried about getting injured also”.
In case you didn’t know…
India’s captain in all three formats, Virat Kohli has undergone tremendous transformation from his chubby-face days, and has evolved himself into a super fit athlete, a process that started with a sudden realisation after the 2012 IPL.
As a batsman, he has been in jaw-dropping form, with his purple patch refusing to dry season after season and format after format. In his last four Test series, Kohli has scored a double century in each, becoming the first batsman in Test cricket to do so.
Also read: Virat Kohli sacrificed butter chicken and rolls to become top batsman, says coach
The heart of the matter
Heaping praise on Kohli’s current form and fitness during the launch of “Numbers Don’t Lie”, a book by Aakash Chopra and Impact Index, Kapil Dev said that all was going well for Kohli at the moment, even decision referrals. He said he was pleased by the 28-year old’s approach to the game, drawing a clear distinction between Kohli’s style of play and that of his peers, saying that the Indian captain has “excellent technique” and can pick the length very early to play a shot.
He also said that it is scary how Kohli is rocketing towards greatness, terming him to be a mix of Vivian Richards and Sachin Tendulkar. He also said that if Kohli continues in the same vein, he might be actually spoken ahead of Donald Bradman in the future.
What’s next?
Kohli, Test captain, awaits Australia’s incoming team as part of the last leg of their 13-Test home season, the first of which begins at Pune on February 23. At 895 points in the batting rankings, Virat Kohli is closing in on the 900-mark, and will become only the second Indian after Sunil Gavaskar (916) to cross the landmark. His mentor, Sachin Tendulkar’s highest career-ranking was 898.
Sportskeeda’s take
Although praise for Kohli has been pouring in from all quarters, and adjectives have started looking jaded from being overused, Kapil Dev’s remarks are a stark reminder of the fact that being in superb form for such long periods might eventually (god forbid!) take the juice out of Kohli mind and body at some point in the future.