Star Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) batter Virat Kohli revealed how ex-South African wicketkeeper-batter Mark Boucher had the “biggest impact” on him during his early days with the franchise and helped him overcome difficulties in playing short balls. Virat was speaking on the RCB Podcast’s latest episode, released on the franchise’s YouTube channel. Speaking about Boucher, Virat said that he came with a mindset that he is going to help Indian players and saw a bit of potential in him. He also said that Boucher told him that he would be doing himself a “disservice” if he did not go on to play for India in all formats.
“So he figured out what my weaknesses could be. If I wanted to go to the next level, this is what I need to do without me asking him anything. And he said, okay, I have seen you play this, that, and the other. We need to work on this, that and a couple more things. I was like, okay. So he took me to the nets,” he said.
“He said, you need to work on the short ball. No one is going to give you a chance in international cricket if you cannot pull the ball. And I remember it was in a game we were playing in Chennai or Kolkata, one of the venues, where he told me that when I come to commentate in India four years from now, if I do not see you playing for India, you would do a disservice to yourself,” he added.
Virat said that his conversations with Boucher left him stunned and pushed him to keep getting better.
“He had a massive impact on me in those early years. I was very realistic about my abilities. Because I had seen a lot of other people play. And I did not feel like my game was anywhere close to theirs. The only thing that I had was the determination and the willingness that if I wanted to make my team win, I was willing to do anything,” he said.
Boucher played for RCB from 2008-10, when Virat was slowly finding his feet in international cricket and had not played Test cricket for India. In 27 matches, Boucher made 388 runs at an average of 29.85, with a half-century.
Virat said that it was his determination to win the games for India and his fighting spirit that earned him a place in the Indian team and the backing of then skipper MS Dhoni and coach Gary Kirsten.
“Gary and MS made it very clear to me that we are backing you to play at number 3, and this is what you can do for the team and what you represent on the field, your energy, your engagement, that is of biggest value for us. So I was asked to play that way. I was not seen as an outright match-winner. But I had this thing of I am going to stay in the fight. I am not going to give up. And that is what they backed. So that very thing that God blessed me with, that helped me to improve my game, my technique, everything,” he said.
Virat admitted that while he was never the most “technically sound” or “naturally gifted”, his desire to “be the best” and keeness to learn helped him get better.
On playing for the franchise initially, Virat said that he was extremely nervous around the team’s Indian seniors such as Zaheer Khan, Anil Kumble, and Rahul Dravid, and felt the fear to work hard and behave well. On the other hand, he did not feel that kind of connection with the foreign legends initially.
“I became close to Zak (Zaheer Khan) because he more or less took me under his wing and really made me comfortable. And we formed a great relationship from then on, which continues to be. The foreign stars, I did not have a taste of sharing the same space with them. Because I had never played with them,” he added.
“These legends obviously had played so many games with them, against them over so many years. So they had some sort of a communication or a connection, you can say. But I had none. So I did not really understand that dynamic initially. But with the Indian legends, I was very, very nervous. That I need to be working hard. I need to be well-behaved. I mean, for me, the only icebreaker could be cricket conversations.”
“Because beyond that, I did. So I’ve always been this way. I did not feel like I could ask them anything about their own personal lives or, you know, try to push my way into asking them what’s going on and what about this and that. I was like, no. Once things evolve naturally, then yes, maybe you can open up more about different aspects of their lives or you want to share yours. But yeah, cricket conversations was the only thing that kept the communication going.”
“And I think everyone was trying to understand this dynamic. Now, suddenly these legends are playing with their colleagues from different countries. And now you have this infusion of these young, brash individuals all in the same change room.”
“So I think it was a bit much for everyone to process. But I think from year two onwards, everyone became more in sync and more at ease with each other. And things started really evolving from then on,” he concluded.
In the ongoing IPL, Virat is at the top of run-scoring charts with 505 runs in 11 matches at an average of 63.12, with seven half-centuries and the best score of 73*. His strike rate is 143.46. His team is at the top of the table with eight wins and three losses and will play Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) in Lucknow on May 9.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
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