Players must keep the game clean: Virat Kohli

Ace batsman Virat Kohli recently spoke on the personal integrity of players, his personal life and all about his cricket. He said that in order to keep the game clean, the authorities are doing a very great job. He added that at the end of the day it all comes down to the personal integrity and moral alignments of the players to not indulge in any unscrupulous activities.

“I think authorities are doing as much as they can to keep the sport clean,” he quoted.

“They can have protocols and they can have rules being set up and that’s how much you can do. Eventually, it’s up to an individual how he wants to go about his decisions. If individuals choose to do something wrong, doesn’t matter how much you control them,” said the Indian Test skipper.

“Authorities are doing their best to curb fixing, but there’s only so much that can be done. They can set protocols or rules, but the choice boils down to the individual. If someone chooses to do wrong, it doesn’t matter how much you control them,” said Kohli. He said it is impossible to pinpoint any player and tell him personally not to get distracted to unwanted attractions. “You obviously cannot go into someone’s room and tell them not to speak to someone in a certain way,” quoted Virat Kohli.

He further said that he was lucky not to be approached by any unwanted persons yet and also expressed he never wishes to be contacted by any corrupt person. “No, I have never encountered anything like that anytime in my life fortunately. I love the sport too much,” said Kohli. “For me, to even explain myself for something that might not even lead to anything. As a cricketer, you feel sad from inside to encounter those situations. Fortunately, I haven’t and god willingly, I won’t in future also,” he added.

He expressed his desire to inspire people. He said even if he can inspire a few people to take up the sport, he would be more than happy with his career. “When I finish, if I can inspire people to take up the sport, if I can inspire children to say that we want to play sport because we want to be like him, that would make me feel like I have achieved something,” he said.

He also spoke on how people judge cricketers by their actions off the field rather than focusing on his performances on the field. “When I came into the team, I had tattoos, dress up in a certain way, I used to do things I felt were fine but maybe not in a perfect mould of a stereotype Test cricketer. When I now see any youngster being judged early for being a bit more flamboyant, I correct them that there is nothing wrong.Please judge him on what he is doing on the field, not judge him not in his own life or how he is as a person,” Kohli conceded.

Kohli also shared an emotional tragic story of how he dealt with his father’s death. Kohli termed that phase as the hardest time of his life. He added to it that he had to complete the match too as not completing a game of cricket is like a sin. “I still remember the night my father passed away as it was the hardest time in my life. But the call to play the morning after my father’s death came instinctively to me. For me, not completing a cricket game was equivalent to committing a sin. The importance that cricket holds in my life is above everything else,” he quoted.

He further added that the death made him more determined towards achieving his dreams and that of his father too. “My father’s death gave me the strength to fulfill my dreams, and that of my father’s also,” said Kohli.

Commenting on his much talked about fitness training, he maintained that he doesn’t like cheating on his fitness. He also quoted the current Indian team as a very fit unit. “The current Indian team is a very fit unit, it’s a change we are very proud of. I train for an hour and a half every day. I don’t allow myself any cheat days at all,” Kohli signed off.

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