Dav Whatmore says Losing Weight was the turning point in Virat Kohli's career

Virat Kohli has come a long way since being the chubby young boy in his teens

What’s the story?

Former Sri Lankan coach Dav Whatmore has revealed losing weight and getting himself in the right shape has proved to be the turning point in Virat Kohli’s career. The Australian, who was the head coach when the Kohli-led India Under-19 side won the title in Kuala Lumpur in 2008, added that the right-hander always had the leadership qualities within him, but was not up to the mark as far as fitness was concerned.

"Even during the under-19 days, Virat showed great leadership skills and always led by example. To me, the turning point in his career was when he lost weight. The skills were always there, and so was his mental strength but the ability to remain disciplined and lose weight takes a lot of doing," Whatmore said at the event where he was unveiled as the Director of the ‘International Centre’ set up by Sri Ramachandra Arthroscopy and Sports Sciences Centre (SRASSC) for Excellence in Chennai on Wednesday.

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Whatmore’s comments come on the back of Kohli's childhood coach Rajkumar Sharma revealing that the 28-year-old gave up some of his favourite food items in order to develop a high level of fitness, adding the items he ate during his younger days find no place in his diet now.

The heart of the matter

Whatmore then focussed his attention on another key member of the present Indian squad- Ravichandran Ashwin- stating the 30-year-old was the Most Valuable Player of this squad and he was an asset for Kohli in the team at the moment.

"Ashwin is the MVP (Most Valuable Player). Not just with the ball, but he can hit a century coming at No 6. He is a very smart boy, comes from Tamil Nadu and is an engineer. What an asset to have. I am sure Virat must be really happy to have him," he said.

Also Read: Virat Kohli sacrificed butter chicken and rolls to become top batsman, says coach

What’s next?

The immediate objective for both players is to help India beat England in the second ODI against England in Cuttack on Thursday and while Kohli will be looking to carry forward from where he left in Pine, Ashwin will look to put in a better showing from the Gahunje Stadium on Sunday, where he went for 63 runs in 8 wicket-less overs.

Sportskeeda’s take

In order to become a champion, it requires a player to put in a great amount of sacrifices and sweat before he can actually make it. Kohli has done all of that and hence find himself in the place where he is today.

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Edited by Staff Editor