How Virat Kohli reacted to Indian players refusing to practice on 'dangerous wicket' in SA

Virat Kohli's grit and passion never ceases to amaze people. Former fielding coach of Indian cricket team R Sridhar narrated one such incident when in South Africa Indian batsman refused to give up and batted on dangerous pitch on practice ground provided to m. India toured South Africa where a Virat Kohli-led Men-In-Blue lost Test series 2-1. This incident proved to be a perfect example of Virat Kohli's gritty mindset which has turned him into one of most successful players.

R Sridhar reveals Virat Kohli batted on an unused pitch for hours

R Sridhar mentioned entire incident in his book, “COACHING BEYOND: My Days with Indian Cricket Team" as how Virat Kohli didn't pay heed to any advice and straight went out to bat on threatening pitch. As told by Sridhar,  condition of surface was t great as it was unused and was t ideal for batting.

or Indian players used centre wicket to prepare for match but it was Virat who took initiative to pad up and bat on that dangerous surface.

Sridhar insisted despite several warnings Virat didn't listen and continued batting on that pitch. “Before that England series, we were in South Africa in January 2018 preparing for a Test series. y had given us a county ground for practice. pitches were horrible. re was one center wicket on which we were practicing, but side wickets at Western Province in Cape Town were far from ideal.

“Virat saw that body was batting on wicket because it could be a bit dangerous. He quickly padded up, called Sanjay, Raghu, and myself, and said he wanted to bat."

He went on to add, “We tried to dissuade him (Virat Kohli), but he was adamant he wanted to bat on surface. ‘I want it to be dangerous, I want to bat on this dangerous wicket and I want Raghu to bowl at his fastest.’ That is what he did. He did that every time. He put himself under severe distress in difficult conditions and ensured he overcame it. So he was honing his skill, he was also sharpening himself mentally.”