London, Jul 8: Drawing parallels between on-field pressure situations in two vastly different games, former India captain Virat Kohli says what tennis players endure week after week can only be compared to the less frequent “intimidation and pressure” that an Indian cricketer faces in World Cup knockouts and clashes against arch foes Pakistan.
Kohli, who has retired from T20 Internationals and Tests, made the comparison after witnessing Wimbledon action with actor wife Anushka Sharma here on Monday. He was in conversation with tennis legend Vijay Amritraj during the day’s proceedings.
“I think the experience (in pressure situations) can be similar. But the intimidation factor and the pressure that would replicate for us in a World Cup game, a World Cup match between India and Pakistan or a semifinal or a final of the World Cup, your legs are shivering because of sheer pressure,” Kohli said during the interview telecast on ‘Star Sports’.
“But these players might be facing that from the quarterfinal onwards to the final, which I think is a lot of pressure to handle. I have a lot of respect for tennis players for playing with that composure and maintaining that level of fitness and mental toughness,” added the superstar, who spends considerable time in London during his breaks from the game.
One of the all time greats in cricket, retired recently from the red-ball format with 9230 runs from 123 matches that contained 30 hundreds. Kohli said cricketers go through their own challenges on field because of the ever-evolving nature of the sport.
“Different sports have different challenges. In cricket, one of the challenges is that you have to wait for a long period, you warm-up in the morning and then you come back and wait in the dressing room, as you don’t know when you are going to bat,” he said.
“Sitting there, reading the game, the situation changes so drastically. Here (in tennis) probably you have set conditions, you know what you are walking into,” he added.
Kohli also feels that cricket offers less chances to stage a comeback into the match than tennis.
“One more challenge regarding my skills in cricket — batting — is that you have got only one chance. You don’t have much chance to make a comeback, you make one mistake and you clap for the rest of the day.
“But these guys might be down two sets and a break, but still can come back and win,” he said.
The 36-year-old felt that playing in the Wimbledon Centre Court can be considered a more intimidating experience than being at a cricket stadium because of the crowd’s proximity to the athletes.
“There are such amazing stadiums to play cricket in the world, and there is a lot of pressure because there are so many people in the stadium. But I would say it was not as intimidating as the Centre Court because of the distance the people are sitting from you,” he explained.
“When we are batting on the pitch, the fans are too far away, so you can get lost in your own space. You don’t hear the comments, you don’t hear the cheers and boos…,” he said.
“But yeah, if I was there, and the crowd was so close to me then that could have been intimidating for me,” he added.
Kohli bats for Djokovic
Kohli hoped that Serbian legend Novak Djokovic wins this year’s Wimbledon for a record 25th Grand Slam.
“I have been in touch with Novak (Djokovic) for a while now. We have exchanged a few messages and he has been gracious and kind to stay in touch.” Kohli also said his dream final would be between Djokovic and Spanish star Carlos Alcaraz, the two-time defending champion here.
“I want Carlos (Alcaraz) and Novak in the final and probably Novak win the title because that would be tremendous for him at this stage of his career, and the whole conversation of being the greatest of all time, maximum number of Grand Slams and he deserves it,” he signed off. (PTI)
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