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Till the time I play sport, I'll train like a maniac, the Indian cricket captain tells national football skipper Sunil Chhetri in an Instagram Live chat, credits trainer Shanker Basu for his physical transformation.
India skipper Virat Kohli on Sunday said that he will continue to train like a maniac till the time he plays the sport.
Kohli also credited Royal Challengers Bangalore's trainer Shanker Basu for helping with this physical transformation.
The Indian skipper was doing an Instagram live session with India football captain Sunil Chhetri when he talked about his physical transformation.
"It (fitness and training) is everything for me, I would not take credit for it, for me the biggest factor for my career going in another template has to be Shanker Basu. He was a trainer at RCB, he introduced me to lifting. I was a bit hesitant; I had some back issues. It was a totally new concept for me. But within three weeks I was amazed at the results that followed," Kohli told Chhetri.
"After that, he worked with me on my diet, I started paying attention to what was happening with my body, that's when I realised that because of my genes, I have to work twice or thrice on my body, I am doing the basic thing which my career requires me to do. Till the time I am playing the sport, I will be a maniac, if you are playing for the country, you have to work hard, if you cannot do that, then you should step away," he added.
Kohli also revealed that he Juventus forward Cristiano Ronaldo was one athlete he admires most.
"There are so many amazing athletes, who play so well. But he turned up in all the big games. I remember when Juventus had lost 2-0 to Atletico Madrid in the first leg of a Champions League tie. Two days before the return leg, he told everyone to come to the game and that it was going to be a special night. He went on to score a hat-trick and help Juventus win the game 3-0. That to me is 'beast mentality'," he said.
Kohli has become one of the most highly admired sportspersons in the country and it is a testament to his disciplined fitness routine.
Kohli and Chhetri also discussed anecdotes about how they would have to be resourceful in their youth for simple things like retrieving the ball from the gutter or setting up a court to play badminton.