'Kobe Bryant's untimely death has put things in perspective for me' - Virat Kohli

The tragic death of legendary American basketball player Kobe Bryant in California last month left the entire sporting fraternity in shock. The cricketing community was no exception either and India captain Virat Kohli was among the first to condole Bryant’s death along with his teenage daughter Gianna and seven others in a private helicopter crash.

Kohli, who expressed his grief over Bryant’s death earlier, on Tuesday, said that it has affected his outlook towards life, which according to him, is sometimes taken for granted in pursuit of control over future. The 41-year-old Bryant was a two-time Olympic gold medallist and one of the most celebrated basketball players of all time. His late daughter was also a budding basketball player. Kohli had said earlier that he had grown up seeing the NBA legend’s game.

“Firstly, it was a shock to everyone. I grew up watching those NBA games in the morning and watching what he did on the court. But when someone that you have looked up to in some ways, passes away like that, it does put things in perspective,” India Today quoted Kohli as saying on the eve of the first ODI against New Zealand in Hamilton.

“At the end of the day, life can be so fickle. It’s so unpredictable. I think a lot of the times we get too caught up in the pressures of what we have to do tomorrow…we really forget living life and enjoying life and just appreciating and being grateful for the life we have,” the 31-year-old said.

The ace cricketer also said that a tragedy like Bryant’s death made one realise that nothing can be more important than enjoying every moment of life.

‘It put things in perspective for me massively’: Virat Kohli

“It did put things in perspective for me massively. It just makes you feel like not wanting to have control of things in front of you all the time, and just embracing life and appreciating it.

You start looking at things from a different point of view suddenly and you want to enjoy every moment you’re going through. You realise that what you’re doing at the end of the day is not the most important thing. The most important thing is life itself,” he added.

Kohli just scripted the record of becoming the first captain to win a T20I series in New Zealand. While he led the Men in Blue to win their first four games, Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul won them the final one to complete a 5-0 whitewash.

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