To set an example for his followers, a leader should always lead from the front, and Indian cricket star Virat Kohli has truly justified it.
Known for his strict fitness regime and healthy lifestyle, the India captain has refused a lucrative multi-crore offer to endorse a soft drink.
The Hindu has reported that the 28-year-old has confirmed the news that he has turned down the offer to advertise for the soft drink, as he does not consume aerated drinks. Earlier, the batting star had also decided not to extend his six-year deal with soft-drinks manufacturing giant Pepsi.
“If I myself won’t consume such things, I won’t urge others to consume it, just because I am getting money out of it,” Kohli was quoted as telling CNN-IBN. “When I started my fitness turnaround, it was more of a lifestyle thing initially. If something goes away from that, I would not want to be a part of that or be promoting that. We are actually on the cusp of making some big changes on that front. Things that I’ve endorsed in the past, I won’t take names, but something that I feel that I don’t connect to anymore.”
Kohli’s healthy lifestyle, nevertheless, has brought a welcome change in the Indian dressing room with his teammates also prioritising fitness and the team-management making it clear that fitness is of utmost priority to make it to the team.
The players’ lifestyle was also praised by the team’s strength and conditioning coach Shankar Basu.
“This Indian cricket team has brought in the fifth dimension. It all started with playing the game – batting, bowling and fielding – fitness being a part of it. Now the players have embraced fitness and lifestyle which reflects on the buffet spread here. They are extremely aware and well educated on what to have as a proper meal in-take and what not to have.
“They are proper professionals, and the fifth dimension is here to stay. That is the name of the game now. The macro and micro nutrients, the timing of the meals, supplements and what not has become the game-changer here. It’s gung-ho time here,” Shankar had told bcci.tv recently.