Virat Kohli: ‘The Spotlight Became Too Much’
Virat Kohli Breaks Silence on Leaving Captaincy
Virat Kohli, one of India’s most celebrated cricketers, has finally spoken out about his decision to step down as captain of both the Indian national team and the Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB).
In a recent episode of the ‘RCB Bold Diaries’ podcast, Kohli revealed that the constant pressure of leading both teams for nearly a decade, along with the intense scrutiny surrounding his batting performance, became overwhelming.
Pressure and the Spotlight
“At one point, it did become tough for me because there was just too much happening in my career. I was captaining India for a period of 7-8 years. I captained RCB for nine years. There were expectations on me from a batting perspective every game that I played,” Kohli shared.
He explained that the pressure wasn’t limited to captaincy, as his batting was constantly under the microscope. “I didn’t have this sense that the attention was off me. If it wasn’t captaincy, it would be batting. I was exposed to it 24×7. It did get very tough on me, and it did get too much in the end,” Kohli admitted.
Prioritizing Happiness
To combat this relentless pressure, Kohli took a month-long break from cricket in 2022, even refraining from touching a bat. He emphasized the importance of finding happiness in his life, away from the constant scrutiny.
“That’s why I stepped down because I felt like if I’ve decided I want to be in this place, I need to be happy. I need to have a space in my life where I can just come and play my cricket without being judged, without being looked at as what are you going to do this season and what’s going to happen now,” he said.
From Under-19 Champion to Senior Team Star
Kohli also delved into his journey from winning the Under-19 World Cup to breaking into the Indian senior team. He recalled the support he received from then-captain Mahendra Singh Dhoni and coach Gary Kirsten, who encouraged him to play his natural, aggressive style.
“They made it very clear to me that we are backing you to play at number three,” Kohli shared. “This is what you can do for the team. What you represent on the field, your energy, your engagement, is of the biggest value to us. We want you to play that way.
He emphasized the importance of that unwavering energy and the nervousness that comes with competing at the highest level, even for someone like him who has achieved so much success.
The Never-Ending Drive
“What happens when you’re young is you feel like, ‘if I have scored X amount of runs by the time I’m this age or whatever’, things will ease out. It never happens like that. And that is the marker actually. When you stop feeling that nervousness or that anticipation of how things are going to unfold is when people say that you’re done,” Kohli said.
“So that never goes away from you because that very energy is what keeps you engaged to do what you need to do in that moment, in that present moment.”
