I loved that attitude - Harbhajan Singh on Virat Kohli’s work ethic

Former India captain, Virat Kohli, has been one of the finest batters to have ever played the game. Taking over the mantle from Sachin Tendulkar, Virat has shown class and control at every single juncture of the sport and his life.

Many might wonder, where did it all begin? Talking on the podcast, ‘Find a way with Taruwar Kohli’, Kohli’s former teammate, Harbhajan Singh said that it all started very young and the two had a couple of conversations which egged Virat more into action.

Harbhajan said, “I remember when he first came into the team. I think Viru (Sehwag) was injured, and the batters were all dismissed by (Ajantha) Mendis. Virat Kohli came in, a young guy full of free energy came in to bat, played Mendis and scored 54 in a One-Day game. He came in and asked how he played, I said he was decent. But he felt that he should have smacked him more. I loved that attitude.”

Narrating another incident, the Turbanator stated, “When he was starting in Test cricket, we were in the West Indies and the fast-bowler, Fidel Edwards used to get him out on the pad or the shorter delivery. He was disappointed in Barbados and the self-doubt crept in if I was good enough.”

Harbhajan knew that it was time to give Virat Kohli some tough love, adding, “I told him then that if he didn’t score 10,000 runs, then you would be ashamed of yourself. You have so many capabilities that you can score 10,000 Test runs and if you didn’t do it then it would be on you. After that, the amount of effort he has put in, is three times the amount of effort when it comes to his body, mind and how he approaches the game.”