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Virat Kohli throwback: In his first interview, 18-year-old Kohli analyses India’s 2007 World Cup plans - WATCH VIDEO
In the interview, where he sat alongside delhi teammate Puneet Bisht, Kohli spoke on India’s squad for the 2007 World Cup, and how the team would fare under Rahul Dravid’s leadership.
As the Indian cricket team captain Virat Kohli celebrates his 31st birthday on Tuesday, a video of his first televised interview, recorded back in 2007 before the start of Indian cricket team’s World Cup campaign in West Indies, has gone viral on social media. At the time, Kohli, who was 18-years-old, was making waves in the domestic circuit for New Delhi. In the interview, where he sat alongside Delhi teammate Puneet Bisht, Kohli spoke on India’s squad for the 2007 World Cup, and how the team would fare under Rahul Dravid’s leadership.
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“Success can be determined by how well the Indian players gel together and perform as a unit,” Kohli said in the interview.
At the time, there was a controversy surrounding Virender Sehwag’s selection in the squad, when chief selector Dilip Vengsarkar claimed that the opener was included in the team on the insistence of captain Dravid. Kohli, in the interview, went on to say that the chief selector should never have made such a statement.
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“Yes, such a thing should not have been disclosed on TV. This will affect Sehwag’s morale because his performance was anyway a bit down and after this statement was put out, his confidence could have become lower,” he had said.
“I think it’s okay on Dravid’s part. World Cup is a big tournament where you need experience, and can’t count on youth as much. According to me, it’s the right decision because Sehwag has a lot of experience and has scored a lot of runs for India,” he had further added.
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On his 31st birthday, Kohli looked back on his younger self and wrote a note on Twitter. Virat shared a post on Twitter where he tried to explain his journey and some life lessons to his younger self. “You will be loved by many and will be disliked too. By some who don’t even know you. Don’t care about them Keep believing yourself,” he wrote in the letter.
