He loves this place. He says there is a very positive vibe about Australia and there is something about the place and the opposition that urges him to do well in every single outing. He scored centuries for fun in whites the last time India toured Down Under, and this time he is hitting back-to-back centuries in the ongoing five-match ODI series. When Virat Kohli got his 24th ODI ton at Melbourne, there was a moment when he got emotional. The reason which he later stated was the promise made to his brother who had come to watch him. Virat continued from where he had left from Melbourne scoring another century at Canberra in the following ODI. For Kohli, the love affair with Australia was just going from strength to strength.
“Australia is a country I like coming to,” Kohli said on the eve of the fifth ODI at Sydney. “It is very relaxed. We can be ourselves here. We can walk around and just have a normal life. That really helps you to be in a very good mental space, which as a cricketer is very important to experience. And that's what I like about Australia. From the cricketing aspect, it gives me a chance to test myself and see where I stand ability-wise and (also) mentally.”
Kohli’s style of play and aggressive nature was compared to the very ‘Australian’ way of playing. When asked about the comparison, Virat said it was something that came naturally to him. “I come from a city where you always had to fight your way up the system. Those things, and the things that happen in your life, make you mentally tougher and things don’t bother you after a while because you know you’re working hard enough. You don’t really go out there and take unnecessary things being said to you from anyone. I follow that in life and I follow that in cricket as well. As long as I’m working hard and honestly, I don’t really need to explain myself to anyone or go out there and prove to anyone that I haven’t done anything wrong.
“But that’s where it comes from and that’s the kind of attitude you see with people in Australia as well. Maybe that’s why they can connect to it a little bit. But I’ve never taken it seriously, I mean I don’t take I along with me everywhere, that people think I’m more Australian than Indian. It’s just something that might connect to them, and they feel that way, but this is the way I’ve always been, I guess.”
Kohli’s 24th ODI ton brought along with it an achievement of being the fastest to 7000 ODI runs. But for Kohli, those were just numbers and deep inside it was still that kid wanting to make it big at the grand stage. “I still think of myself as a club cricketer wanting to do well in every game. That's the kind of mindset I used to have when I hadn't played state cricket for Delhi. I just wanted to go out there and win every match for my academy team and score the most number of runs every game that I played. That was something that I've always been taught by my coach, and it's something that I've luckily been able to remember for a while.”
There is sincerity in Kohli’s words. There is a smile of acceptance when he is asked about being compared to former legends. He understands the accolades coming his way, but at the same time realises the need to be grounded and continue building on his good form. “I feel grateful that people make comparisons with the great Vivian Richards or any of the other greats because as a youngster, you wouldn't have thought of being compared to some of the greats of the game. It's surreal to think about it. It's better not to think about it. Somewhere you feel that you don't deserve that comparison because I always believe that people who played in the previous era had it more difficult because of the lack of quality of protective gear and no helmets.
“If you're talking of Viv Richards, I can't even think of playing in a cap. He played all his career in a cap anywhere in the world and he hit fast bowlers with the new ball across the line for sixes over square-leg. Even thinking about it sends chills down your spine. That is a different kind of belief and motivation which is very hard to recreate.”
Kohli for many, is destined for greatness. The numbers tell you the story and the impact on the game he has had has got everyone talking. For Kohli though it was about being in the present and starting from zero each time he walks out to the field. “I don't think about what has really happened in my career so far,” he explained. “At times when you do get reminded of it, when people speak to you about it, you don't actually have a discussion about these things, but you go back to your room and think it's probably too surreal to believe.
“In our head, we still feel like we are playing the first game. We have that kind of excitement and that sort of nervousness before we go out to bat. But for the outside world, it's a number of things - stats, numbers and career - which we never look at when you go onto the field. I think that is very important, because the moment you start drifting towards that side, you start losing focus on what you have to do and everything starts crumbling. I like to feel grateful that I am in that position but it's very important to remember what got me there and still hold on to those values and beliefs.”
