Virat Kohlithe legendary Indian batsman and long-time Royal Challengers Bangalore star recently praised the incredible fitness levels of Indian hockey players, admitting that cricketers are nowhere near the physical standards required in hockey. His remarks have drawn widespread praise in the Indian hockey community, with players calling it a valuable recognition of the demanding nature of the game.Speaking during the third edition of the RCB Innovation Lab Indian Sports Summit on Tuesday, Kohli highlighted the importance of fitness in professional sports and why he believes fitness should be seen as a basic requirement rather than an afterthought.“I know people sometimes look at fitness as something extraordinary, but for me it’s just what the job demands. It should be the norm, not celebrated as something special,” Kohli said.“Cricket is so important in our country that we often neglect other sports,” he added. Kohli then made a brilliant comparison between cricket and hockey, admitting that Indian hockey players operate at a completely different physical level.“If I’m being brutally honest, we’re not even 15 percent of the fitness of an Indian hockey player. If hockey players were to watch our training sessions, they’d probably laugh because their sport is physically demanding,” remarked Kohli.Reacting to Kohli’s comment, Indian men’s hockey team captain Harmanpreet Singh revealed details of a recent conversation he had with the cricket superstar regarding training and fitness standards in hockey.“We had a great discussion about fitness at an event. He told me that hockey is a fast-paced game and was eager to know about our fitness standards. We talked about the U-U test and when I told him that even our goalkeepers scored above 20, he was really surprised. We had an amazing discussion and focused on fitness training in which someone received fitness training. According to the fitness standards of hockey players. Because our sport is one of the fastest and most physically demanding sports in the world. Such recognition means a lot to the hockey community,” said Harmanpreet.
