Virat Kohli Says Heavy Workload Taking A Toll, Expresses Admiration For Federer

Virat Kohli, India’s cricket team captain, admitted Tuesday the heavy workload of playing all three formats of the game — Test cricket, One Day International (ODI) and Twenty20 — has taken a toll on his physicality.

The 29-year-old has been leading India from the front in recent years in all three formats and has established himself as one of the greatest in the current generation. Kohli is ranked the number two batsmen in Test Cricket and number one in ODI, while he has dropped to number six in T20 cricket.

The team India captain has played 25 Tests, 42 ODIs and 27 T20 Internationals for the country, while also representing Bangalore Royal Challengers in two editions of the Indian Premier League (IPL) since the start of 2016 and that has taken a toll on Kohli’s body. The heavy workload is unlikely to get easier as India prepare to tour England and Australia later in the year.

“Physically I had a few niggles, I am just getting over those. The workload has started to disagree with me a little bit. I have to be very careful about how I go forward with my body, my mind, my cricket,” Kohli said, as quoted by the Hindustan Times. “Times like these are very, very important. I am totally enjoying it; I do not even have an inch of me missing out on anything because my body really needed this.”

Keeping an eye on the upcoming tours for India, the skipper was not included in the squad for the ongoing Nidahas T20 Tri-Series against Sri Lanka and Bangladesh. Kohli, however, has been keeping track of the Rohit Sharma-led squad, who are one win away from making the finals of the tournament.

Kohli's next assignment will be the 2018 edition of the IPL, which begins April 4 and the Royal Challengers skipper is looking forward to the annual tournament after a spell on the sidelines.

“Yesterday (Monday) was a really good win for us. I am over the phase when I used to watch matches and feel I have to be on the field. (In the) IPL I will be coming out fresh, I will be mentally in a better place,” Kohli said.

Kohli, who recently tied the knot with Bollywood actress Anushka Sharma, cited tennis star Roger Federer as an example, while talking about taking breaks in order to remain in peak physical condition throughout his career.

Federer surprised plenty of onlookers with his game in the last 13 months when he displayed some of his best tennis. The Swiss ace returned at the start of 2017 season after missing the last six months of 2016 due to a knee injury and has since played a limited schedule to ensure he remains fit for the key tournaments.

Despite taking lengthy breaks during the course of the season, Federer has been able to play at the highest level consistently. He has won nine of the 14 events he played since the start of the 2017 season, which include three Grand Slam titles.

“Roger Federer is my ultimate favorite, just because of the way that belief shows when he plays and it is so beautiful, he has a family now, he has his priorities set and he takes time off the game without worrying about opinion and criticism and then he comes in and wins Grand Slams at 36. He is defying all logic so that is something that I totally love. I hate following the norm, and he is someone breaking all those barriers on a daily basis. I have a huge respect for him,” Kohli added.