India vs New Zealand: ‘Have been playing almost 300 days a year’ - Virat Kohli on why players need periodic break

Kohli was last rested for the Bangladesh T20Is in November 2019 following the World Cup and the series against West Indies and South Africa.

Team India captain Virat Kohli is not willing to let his intensity dip fro the at least the next three years and is willing to go through the rigours of a packed schedule. He also believes that taking periodic breaks from the game has allowed him to chug along and manage the workload concerns. He is one of the busiest cricketers in the international circuit and has often spoken about managing workloads, especially for players who are involved in all the three formats.

Virat Kohli (BCCI)

“I think it’s been eight or nine years that I have been playing almost 300 days a year with the travelling and practice sessions,” Kohli said ahead of the first Test against New Zealand. “And the intensity is right up there all the time. So it does take a toll on you. I am not saying it’s not something the players are not thinking about. We do choose to take a lot more breaks individually even though the schedule might not allow you to. You are going to see a lot of that in the future from many players. Not just myself, especially from the guys who are playing all three formats. It’s not that easy.

For him, being the captain comes with additional responsibility and hence, he has to show the way and be involved whenever he takes the field. He has not sight of the bigger picture and says that when he turns 34-35, the talk about a transition phase can kickstart.

“Then being captain and having intensity in practice sessions and discussing the game, so it does take a toll on you. So periodic breaks for me seems to work pretty okay. At a time when the body doesn’t respond as well, maybe when I am 34-35, you might have a different conversation at that stage. But, for the next two-three years, I have no issues at all. I can keep going on with the same intensity and I also understand that the team wants a lot of my contribution so that we can ease into another transition phase that we faced some five-six years ago. So the mindset is on the larger picture, and from that point, I am preparing myself for a rigorous three years from now.”

Kohli was last rested for the Bangladesh T20Is in November 2019 following the World Cup and the series against West Indies and South Africa.