West Indies legends Sir Isaac Vivian Alexander Richards points to one essential trait that is vital to Virat Kohli's success.
'Virat is a go-getter and what sets him apart is his mental strength. He will have backed himself throughout, and on the occasions in the past when I have chatted with him and we have discussed things, his mental strength has always been evident,' Viv posted on the ICC site.
'That has been key to pushing him through to how he is playing now. Very few players, or people, are built like that,' Viv added about Virat.
'Many people have made comparisons between the two of us over the years, partly because of our shared intensity on the field. I love Virat's enthusiasm -- even if he is fielding at long-on or long-off, when one of his bowlers hits the pad, he is appealing. He is always in the game and I like individuals like that,' Viv observed.
'Credit must be given to the backroom staff and everyone who backed him. So much was said about his form, but he is back on top of his game. It is phenomenal to see an individual who has had his low points bouncing back and playing like this.'
'They say form is temporary and he has certainly proven that class is permanent. I am so happy for him, he looks so focused and he is a credit to the game of cricket,' Viv stated.
Viv also backed India to lift the World Cup unbeaten.
India are currently the only unbeaten team in the tournament obliterating the opposition and topping the points table.
'In terms of this year's competition, India have a mindset that they can go all the way playing like this. That absolutely should be their mindset and would be mine if I was in that dressing room -- let's go out with all guns blazing. That approach has worked so far and if that changes, things may go astray.
'I believe they can go all the way unbeaten, which is really something to strive for. There may be some fears of 'We have played so well so far, there may be a bad game around the corner in the semi-final'. They have to try and nullify those and banish any negative thoughts.'
