Virat Kohli feels that taking regular breaks from the game has kept him mentally sharp and prevented burnout. The star batter scored his 28th IPL fifty as RCB started their season with a win against the Sunrisers Hyderabad.
In the IPL season opener on Saturday, Royal Challengers Bengaluru easily defeated Sunrisers Hyderabad by six wickets thanks to Kohli`s 38-ball 69, which included five sixes and as many fours.
Kohli showed no signs of rust in his first Twenty20 match since the IPL final of the previous season, demonstrating how taking regular breaks has allowed him to maintain peak performance despite a demanding international schedule over the years. Addressing concerns about being underprepared after a 10-month gap from the format, Kohli said the bigger challenge for him had always been avoiding burnout.
“Well, you know, the kind of scheduling that we`ve had over the last 15 years and the amount of cricket I`ve played, for me there was always a risk of getting burnt out rather than being undercooked. So these breaks helped me immensely. I stay fresh, I stay excited.” Virat Kohli said.
The 37-year-old stressed that he never returns to competitive cricket unless he is more than 100 per cent.
“Whenever I come back to play, it`s 120%. I`m not coming back, you know, underprepared. In fact, the extra rest helps me to mentally freshen up. As long as you`re physically fit and you`re excited mentally, all those things come together nicely and then you`re able to, you know, contribute for the team`s cause and that`s what you want to do as a player. You don`t want to hold on to a spot.” Kohli said.
Recent white ball form helped me maintain rhythm: Kohli
Reflecting on his return to T20 cricket, Kohli said recent white-ball outings had helped him retain rhythm despite a gap in the shortest format.
“It was good to get back out there. You mentioned T20 cricket. The last game I played was the final last year but I think the way I batted in the one-day series quite recently really helped me to stay in that same kind of momentum,” he said.
RCB are aiming to be the third team in IPL history to successfully defend their title after CSK and MI.
(With PTI Input)
