'It hit home to me, it was like this is it' - Virat Kohli reveals message received from MS Dhoni during his lean patch

Former India skipper Virat Kohli is in great touch at the ongoing T20 World Cup 2022, where India has made it to the semi-final of the tournament. The Men in Blue are gearing up for their semi-final encounter, which is scheduled for November 10, at the Adelaide Oval against England. In the five games of the Super 12 stage, Kohli notched up three half-centuries, and all of them came in a winning cause.

He led India to an extraordinary victory against Pakistan with a game-winning knock of 82*(53) which has been the highlight so far. But it's important to keep in mind that earlier this year, Kohli, the ace batter, went through a rough patch wherein he struggled to score runs. Kohli, during the Asia Cup 2022, had revealed that MS Dhoni was the only person who texted him after he announced his decision of stepping down as India’s Test skipper.

Kohli shares a very special bond with MS Dhoni and has spoken about the legendary wicketkeeper-batter’s role in his life and career very often. Speaking on RCB Podcast, Kohli revealed what text Dhoni had sent him when he was going through a lean patch in his career, and how that message helped his game thereon.

“The only person who has genuinely reached out to me has been MS Dhoni. And for me that is such a blessing to know that I could have such a strong bond and such a strong relationship with someone who is such a senior to me where things are, it is a friendship which is based on a lot of mutual respect. It is one of the things he mentioned in the same message reaching out to me, that when you are expected to be strong and looked at as a strong individual, people forget to ask how are you doing. So, it hit home to me, it was like this is it,” Kohli said on RCB Podcast.

The Asia Cup 2022 was a turning point for Virat Kohli as he walked back into the game after a long break. Before the Asia Cup, he missed a couple of India’s bilateral series’ and took some time off the field. After returning to the game, for the Asia Cup 2022, he looked in great touch and also went on to notch up his maiden T20I century in India’s last game at the tournament, which was also his 71^st international ton.

“I have always been looked at as someone who is very confident, very mentally strong, and can endure any situation and circumstance and show us the way. Sometimes what you realize is that at any given point of life, you need to take a couple of steps back and understand how you are doing,” he added.