Virat Kohli and MS Dhoni
'For me he will always be my captain', Virat Kohli on Mahendra Singh Dhoni. The relation the two share has been immense in the success of Indian cricket and since Kohli took over the mantle from Dhoni in 2017, the former captain has been the guiding light that Kohli does so necessary require.
Opening up on his relationship with Dhoni, Kohli stated that he is eternally grateful for the opportunity provided by the former captain and believes that it is purely because of 'honesty and intent', that he shares a close rapport with Dhoni.
“MS Dhoni is the man who gave me the opportunity to open the innings first time in my career, I can’t explain the respect I have for him in words. For me he will always be ‘My Captain’ because I started my career under him. There has never been a moment that I want to get up there, or I don’t want anyone to give their advice. For me, If I trust someone, believe in someone I would do anything for them. From that point of view there is trust, there is no explanation required between Mahi and me, as we both know that our priority is Indian cricket and we would do anything for the team. Honesty and intent is the main reason why Mahi and my relationship is so strong”, Virat Kohli told Star Sports.
Following MS Dhoni's retirement from Test cricket in 2014, Kohli took rein as Test captain for the first time and made an immediate impact as he became the fourth Indian to score a Test century on captaincy debut. Followed by a great spell to leading India to the No.1 Test spot, Virat Kohli was made captain of all formats after MS Dhoni stepped down in 2017. At the helm of affairs, Kohli opened up on leading India into the 2019 World Cup as captain.
“From the captaincy point of view, this world cup is different in my mind. In the 2015 world cup I was an experienced player, and in 2011 when we won I was the youngest; it’s a different feeling altogether. I was very happy but I could not sync in the emotions; the thought of playing for so many years and then finally winning was something I saw. This world cup is completely different; when you are at the central point of things, the pressure is different. When you continuously play high intensity tournaments in the International level – you need something to get you going and stimulate you in the right way, so yes, I am definitely looking forward to the world cup.”
The Indian skipper spoke about his life outside the cricketing world and how his wife, Anushka Sharma (Bollywood actress), helped him realise the importance of normalcy.
"Normalcy for me, went away at a very young age because I started my career at an early age, but the good thing is that I have a life partner that makes me realise the importance of normalcy. When we are at home, people don’t believe the way we talk and the way we behave - they think our life is like a fairy tale but it’s not that way. I am so grateful to find a like-minded partner and someone who guides me the right way. We have been there for each other throughout this journey. Also, family members always keep things normal for me. It’s not that we do anything in system, we are pretty chill, we wake up whenever we want, be lazy on our holidays. I have a very small circle because I believe that the smaller the circle, the better it is and you would have heard this from a lot of people. You automatically filter the people in your life - The like-minded people stay together and others just drift away because after a certain stage, you can tell if someone is actually a genuine person or otherwise.”
All eyes will be on Virat Kohli and Co this summer as India go into the 2019 World Cup with a balanced squad and as being tagged as 'favourites', the Men in Blue commence their campaign against a depleted South Africa on June 5 at the Rose Bowl in Southampton.
Talking to the press at the eve of the clash, the Indian skipper says he has learnt to deal with aspirations of a cricket-mad country but making right decisions consistently on a cricket field is a gradual process.
Ready to lead India as captain in an ODI World Cup for the first time, a billion people want their skipper to score a hundred every time he walks out to bat.
Kohli has had the distinction of scoring centuries in India's opening games in the 2011 (vs Bangladesh) and the 2015 (vs Pakistan) editions. Ask him if he could complete a coveted hat-trick against South Africa in India's World cup opener on Wednesday, Kohli said dealing with such expectations is now part and parcel of his life.
"Look, when you perform and you perform for a long time, expectations are always there and I sort of understood how to go along with the expectations. You don't go out there to prove anything to anyone, which is a fact, but you have to accept that expectations are going to be there," Kohli said ahead of India's opening game.
