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Displaying remarkable self-awareness, the ace cricketer admitted he was in complete denial about his “vulnerabilities’’ and “frustrations” and often took it out on his near and dear ones.
The former captain of the Indian national team did not try to justify his actions and stated that it was “not fair” on his family and friends, including his wife, actress Anushka Sharma.
“In my case, in denial, frustration was creeping in. I was very cranky and very snappy in my space. It was not fair on Anushka, my close ones. "It's not fair on the people who support you. So I had to take responsibility and kind of put things in perspective," Kohli told teammate Suryakumar Yadav in an interview for BCCI.tv.
Kohli also added that the time away from the cricket field led to him rediscovering his passion for the sport. “I was far off from my cricket. My attachments, my desire, had totally taken over. That's when I realised that I can't be away from who I am. I have to be true to myself. Even when I am vulnerable, I am not playing well, I am the worst player around, and I have to accept it. I can't be in denial,” he explained.
Kohli had a few words of advice for his junior, Yadav. Recalling his personal journey, he stated that although having success in cricket and having the love and confidence of people can be quite heady, athletes have to mentally prepare themselves for the day when they would not be in form and brace themselves for the inevitable criticism they would have to face. "When your cricket is going well, all these things flow well but whenever there is a slight dip, in my case, frustration started creeping in because I wanted to play in a certain way but my cricket was not allowing me to play like before,” he stated.
After a few years of facing a lean patch, the former skipper returned to top form in 2022. He scored his first hundred in 1020 days in September against Afghanistan in T20 Asia Cup.
Kohli was also unstoppable in the T20 World Cup match against Australia. scoring 205 runs to be named the ICC Men's Player of the 'Month for October'. He then smashed his 44th ODI hundred in December.
Talking about his newfound success, the cricketer again emphasised that when nothing seems to work out, and you have reached a dead end professionally, sometimes the best thing you can do is to step back and take some time off to focus on yourself and work on what has been keeping you from being your best. “When I returned relaxed in Asia Cup, I started enjoying training again, which is how I have always played cricket," he said. "So I would say that if you feel even a bit of desperation then take two steps back, rather pushing more and more because it will only go away from you, ’’ he was quoted as saying to the news agency.
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