NEW DELHI: Virat Kohli reached another major ODI milestone on Sunday, but the star batter made it clear that records and numbers have never been his main focus.Kohli became only the second batter after Sachin Tendulkar to complete 15,000 ODI runs. He also hit his record-extending 55th ODI century as India beat West Indies by eight wickets in the first ODI.
Kohli wants to keep pushing himself
Kohli said his priority has always been to understand the situation and do what the team needs.“My focus has never really been on these milestones, so to say. It’s just understanding the situation along the course of just doing the job for the team, (the) achievements come along,” Kohli told the broadcaster after the match.Kohli smashed nine sixes and 10 fours to remain unbeaten on 139 off 88 balls. India scored 300 for two in 41.4 overs while chasing West Indies’ 295 for seven.“Obviously, I feel very grateful and very blessed to be in this position for having played for so long. Just keeping my head down, working hard and thanking God for everything that I’ve been blessed with and the opportunities that I’ve got in my life to be where I am,” Kohli said.“We have a very blessed life and a blessed journey because so many people want to be here, but we get to be the lucky ones, so we better put our head down and just work hard every day of our lives,” he added.
A new challenge at this stage
Kohli said becoming more aggressive with the bat and playing at a higher gear has been a challenge for him at this stage of his career.“… just the understanding of your game, firstly. Also, at the stage that I’m at, just keeping myself physically very fit because the game’s more or less in the mind. I’ve never been a guy who practised a lot even when I was playing all three formats as you know,” he replied to a query from former India coach Ravi Shastri.“For me it’s about about staying mentally fresh, staying in the present moment and just expressing myself really out there to play in a certain way, get used to this template more often.”“I got a challenge at this stage of my career to kind of up the ante and play a gear or two higher and yeah, that was exciting for me to work on.”He continued, “Again, it excites you when you have to unlock a new version at this stage of your career, which will eventually help any team that you play for, be it playing for India or in the IPL. It’s really helped me a lot to play with a free mind and I think that’s what’s working for me.”
Fitness helps him play with a free mind
Kohli also spoke about the role of fitness in his batting and how it helps him visualise his game.“I think to follow a free mind, you need a fit body so for me, it works the other way around. I stay physically fit and then I’m able to visualise the game in the way that I want to play, which allows me the best chance to go out there and execute in the way that I did tonight,” he said.He also stressed the importance of remembering the journey that brought him to this stage.“I think the only thing we need to do is just look back once and where we came from. That’s something that we tend to forget when we are caught up with the hustle of the world and the positions we get into with so much attention and fame and so much love from the fans” he said.“It can be very easy to forget where you came from. But just looking back at the journey from when you started as a child just makes you feel grateful.”Kohli added, “I enjoy each and every minute that I’m out there playing for India because I understand that, as I said I could have been a possibility that I wouldn’t be standing here. I wouldn’t have played for India at all.”
World Cup goal is clear
The 37-year-old said playing only one format for India has also given him clarity about what he wants to achieve.“We are a year away from the World Cup. I know what my goal is and it’s pretty clear for me that whatever games we get, I just need to keep working on different aspects of the game, keep myself physically fit, challenge myself to be out there.”“… run from boundary to boundary in the last 15 overs if I can, field in the inner ring, show intensity. If I keep ticking all those boxes, I’ve got some time left to play in this format as well.”“So when I get an opportunity, I feel happy rather than feeling anxiety or pressure to make the most of it. I just want to express myself and play my game. As I said, I promised myself I’m going to play positively because I can.”“I’m going to continue to play like that but not be reckless. There’s a fine line, which as a professional, as an experienced player, I should have the ability to execute in this way without playing reckless shots and get the team through,” he added.
