Former India spinner R Ashwin was full of praise for after his unbeaten 69 against Sunrisers Hyderabad on Saturday which helped defending champions Royal Challengers Bengaluru start off the 2026 Indian Premier League (IPL) campaign with a 6-wicket victory.
“He walks the talk. It’s almost like he’s putting on a show for people to see how the game should be played, play it hard and play it the way it’s meant to be played. That stood out for me with respect to what Virat did,” Ashwin said on a JioHotstar show.
“I find him quite bizarre at this age. I tell him this during our chats now and then. He was batting on 40-odd, there was a partnership going on, and were coasting. He ran through for the first single, stopped there, and the other batter hadn’t even reached halfway, but he was already looking for a second. That was a 57-metre boundary on the leg side, and it shows the enthusiasm he still brings to the game,” added Ashwin.
Kohli was already in sublime touch coming into the IPL, having scored 93, 23 and 124 in the ODI series against New Zealand in January, where he finished as India’s leading run-getter. The 37-year-old had also topped the charts in the preceding series against South Africa in December, amassing 302 runs, including two centuries.
After the match on Saturday, Kohli opened up about how playing just one format and having breaks in between helps him nowadays.
“Well, you know, the kind of scheduling that we’ve had over the last 15 years and the amount of cricket I’ve played, for me, there was always a risk of getting burnt out rather than being undercooked. So these breaks help me immensely. I stay fresh, I stay excited. Whenever I come back to play, it’s 120%. I’m not coming back, you know, underprepared. In fact, the extra rest helps me to mentally freshen up. And as long as you’re physically fit and you’re excited mentally, both those things come together nicely and then you’re able to contribute for the team’s cause, and that’s what you want to do as a player. You don’t want to hold on to a spot you want to keep performing, and you know, keep putting in the work for the team,” Kohli said.
