‘Not fair on Anushka, had to take…’: What Virat Kohli told Suryakumar Yadav about his frustration

Iconic Indian cricketer Virat Kohli opened up on his frustration during the trying times recently in his career. In a conversation with international teammate and close friend Suryakumar Yadav, Kohli addressed what he experienced. 

Talking about going through a lean patch over the last few seasons, Kohli is now back to his best with two centuries within a month. He opened up on the changes in his behaviour during struggles on the field, how it affected his near and dear ones, including wife and Bollywood star Anushka Sharma. 

Talking to Yadav, Kohli revealed that when his form dip, “frustration started creeping in” and how his game was “very far away” and “desires and detachments had totally taken over” him. The star batter said that he realised that his “denial” had given rise to crankiness and frustration which was not fair for anyone around him including Anushka Sharma. 

Taking the example of Suryakumar Yadav, Kohli explained, “Well, I said this in the post-match presentation as well. Sometimes what happens is people look at you differently. Now, when Surya goes out to play, people think Surya will do it. Keeping up with that is a very intense process. And sometimes what happens is, when you’re playing cricket well, your form is good, and all those things flow well.”

“But when it dips a little, in my case, frustration started creeping in. Because I wanted to play in the same fashion and people have this expectation, so I play like this, I should play like this, I will have to play like this,” he continued.

Of mutual admiration, dealing with expectations & starting the year with a glorious

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"But cricket didn’t allow me to play in that fashion. It was a different time for me. And because of that, where my game was, it was very far away. Because my desires and attachments had totally taken over.”

"That’s when I realised I can’t be away from who I am. I have to be true to myself. Even when I am vulnerable and not playing well, I’m the worst player around, I have to accept it. I can’t be in denial. Because in denial, in my case, a lot of frustration was creeping in and I was getting very cranky, and very snappy in my space, which wasn’t good at all. I did not feel it was fair to anyone around me. Anushka, my close ones. It is not fair to the people that support you and are with you all the time to keep seeing you in that space. I had to take responsibility and put things in perspective,” the former India skipper added.

“After that, when I came back relaxed for the Asia Cup, I started enjoying the practice. I started enjoying training again. Which is how I have always played my cricket. What I will say is that if you feel a little bit of desperation, always take two steps back, rather than pushing more and more. Because then things will start to go away from you,” Kohli concluded.

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(Inputs from IANS)