IPL gave a different dimension to my understanding, says Virat Kohli: Legendary cricketer Virat Kohli has opened up about his participation in the Indian Premier League (IPL) and its benefits to his game. He also thanked Royal Challengers Bangalore for believing in him when no one else did.
Virat Kohli’s association with the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) dates back to 2008 when the franchise first picked him after he took India’s U19 side to a World Cup victory. In fact, Virat is the only cricketer in the history of the IPL to play for a single franchise in all 15 seasons.
The cricketer in a show with Star Sports revealed that several franchisees had the opportunity to invest in him, back in 2008 auctions, but no one believed in him except RCB.
“What this franchise has given me in terms of opportunities in the first three years and believed in me that is the most special thing because as I said there are many teams who had the opportunity, but they didn’t back me, they didn’t believe in me,” Kohli said on RCB’s franchisee show on Star Sports.
He further revealed that people have asked him to put his name in the auction pool in the past and try out different IPL teams.
“To be very honest I thought about it. Yes, I won’t shy away from it and I have been approached many times as well to come into the auction somehow, put my name there and stuff.”
“For me the understanding that the loyalty with RCB like how I follow my life is far greater for me than the fact that five people in the room will say Oh finally you win the IPL with whoever xyz. You feel good for five minutes but then sixth minute you could be miserable with some other issues in the life. So it is not the end of the world for me.”
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IPL gave me a platform to show my capabilities: Virat Kohli
The former RCB skipper also talked about how playing in the IPL has benefitted his game and his mindset to perform in different conditions. He admitted that IPL gave him a platform to pick brains of great players and improve his skills.
“I think outside of playing for India, the IPL gave me the platform to show my capabilities, compete against the best in the world, and share knowledge with them. I think that was the most important thing that added a different dimension to my understanding of the game. This helped me move ahead in a very progressive way.”
“I was picking the brains of people that I probably wouldn’t have come across otherwise on things like how to play in different conditions and what mindset they have. You know, people have different ways to succeed, so it can’t be just one template. So I used to be so excited and grateful for the opportunity to pick their brains and just learn from them day in and day out and that’s, for me, has been the standout feature of IPL,” he added.
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