Veteran Indian National Cricket Team batsman VVS Laxman reckons that concurrent Team India skipper Virat Kohli is a cricketing pioneer who could set an example to leave a legacy behind like his idol Sachin Tendulkar.
“There’s a legacy which Virat Kohli will leave,” Laxman told WION.
The batting great for India Tendulkar has been a trendsetter to achieve the desired results.
The Mumbaikar has inspired Kohli for representing India for almost spending two-and-half-decades. Laxman reiterated Tendulkar has led as an example to score runs over and over again.
“Sachin was an inspiration for an entire generation including players like me. He took a lot of pride playing for the country, scored tons of runs and consistently winning matches for over 24 years is never easy,” Laxman added.
Leading as a solid example, the top-order batsman Kohli has inspired youngsters with his jaw-dropping average in the international fold. Thus, his consistency has pushed his case to acclaim praises for being a batting maestro.
Kohli’s a trendsetter: Laxman
While differentiating between Tendulkar and Kohli, Laxman asserted there is not a big difference. He stated Kohli is a role model for the youngsters, beyond boundaries.
Also, Laxman added Tendulkar is unruffled, whereas, Kohli wears heart on his sleeve. According to the head coach Ravi Shastri, Kohli has improved as a captain.
“Kohli is very similar to Sachin. He’s a trend setter, role model to this generation of cricketers and not just limited to Indian. Budding cricketers look to idolise him. Both of them are little different as personalities are concerned – Sachin is more calm and reserved whereas Kohli is more aggressive and emotional,” Laxman said.
The 30-year-old Kohli, who has slammed 39th One-day International (ODI) hundreds, has already gone past 1000-run tally in the 50-over fold.
On the other side, Tendulkar has heaped praises on the Delhi-based professional for continuing with his burgeoning success across formats.
Of late, the right-handed batsman in Kohli has reaped the rewards to become one of the successful skippers in the cricketing world.
Also, Kohli has lauded the work ethics of Kohli. He asserted Kohli has had been focused on his fitness to benefit his team in the longer run.
VVS Laxman on Kohli’s fitness and Team India’s fielding:
According to Laxman, Kohli has raised the bar by giving his best. He remarked that the former Australian team led by Steve Waugh and Ricky Ponting went on to set the same standard during their heydays. Adding it would apply on Kohli’s teammates.
“Kohli has focused a lot on an important aspect which is critical which is on fitness. When a fit team takes on an opposition, it always carries an edge. It used to be the same for Australia under Steve Waugh, Ricky Ponting. Kohli sets an example and it rubs on all the players,” Laxman said.
Overall, while talking about the Men in Blue, Laxman is confident by saying his national team is one of the strong teams by fitness grounds. He stated the fielding had improved a lot and it will subsequently help the side to excel in demanding conditions.
“India will probably be the fittest team in the world currently. The fielding level has gone really high. All this will help the team do well in pressure situation,” Laxman concluded.
For India, Laxman has featured in 134 Tests and 86 ODIs between 1996 and 2012.
Laxman amassed 8781 runs in the traditional format, whereas, he went on to score 2338 runs in 83 ODI innings. Across formats, Laxman slammed 23 tons and 66 half-centuries.