‘My intensity was a facade’

FORMER India captain Virat Kohli (above) said last Saturday (27) that his mental health suffered during an extended slump in form, and that he had attempted to “fake intensity” to put on a brave front.

Kohli, 33, returned to action when he scored 35 in the Asia Cup Twenty20 match against Pakistan last Sunday (28), after a month-long break.

“For the first time in 10 years I have not touched a bat since a month,” Kohli told Asia Cup broadcasters Star Sports.

“I came to the realisation that I was trying to fake my intensity a bit, recently – convincing yourself that you have intensity but your body is telling you to stop.”

Kohli has endured a prolonged lean batting patch, last scoring an international century in November 2019.

“You can get carried away with so many demands nowadays, especially as schedules get piled up again and again,” he said. “You have seen the result of what happened to Ben Stokes and Trent Boult, Moeen (Ali) retiring from Test cricket. These aren’t abnormalities but happen, and people who are in touch with them know what’s happening in their lives.”

Kohli recently became part of a select group of players, including England captain Stokes, who revealed their struggles with mental health.

“I’m looked at as a guy who is mentally very strong, and I am,” he said. “But everyone has a limit, and you need to recognise that, otherwise things can get unhealthy for you.

“It’s not abnormal. Talk about it and discuss with people. We don’t speak because we are hesitant and we don’t want to be looked at as mentally weak. Trust me, faking to be strong is far worse, and that’s something I’m not feeling any shame for, that I was feeling mentally weak.”