Kohli credits fitness, feel good factor for India duty preparation

What constitutes the ideal preparation for India duty? Is it putting in the hard yards in the domestic circuit, or perhaps rigorous nets sessions?

In the opinion of Virat Kohli, his vast experience, fitness and ‘feel good’ factor should suffice. It would take a brave person to argue against this case, given that Kohli looked majestic in his 120-ball 135 in the first ODI against South Africa in Ranchi on Sunday (November 30, 2025).

“I’ve played 300-odd ODI games and so much cricket over the last 15, 16 years. If you’re in touch with the game, you’re hitting balls at practice, your reflexes are there, your physical ability is there to bat long… If you can bat an hour and a half, two hours in the nets without taking a break, you’re meeting all those markers,” Kohli said in the post-match presentation ceremony.

“I understand if there’s a dip in form, you look for games and try to get that form back. But as long as you’re hitting the ball well and you’re playing good cricket, I think at this stage, with the experience that I have, it’s about being physically fit, mentally ready and excited to play the games. More or less everything else should take care of itself,” Kohli added.

India batting coach Sitanshu Kotak stated that there is no reason to even discuss Kohli’s position in the ODI set up.

“I don’t know why we need to look at all this. He is really batting well. I don’t see any reason to talk about his future. The way he is batting — it’s just brilliant. The way he is performing, his fitness — there are no questions about anything,” Kotak said in the post-match press conference in Ranchi.

No thought has been given to whether Kohli or fellow senior pro Rohit Sharma are in the scheme of things for the 2027 ICC Men’s Cricket World Cup, Kotak explained.

“It’s a matter of two years. I really don’t feel there is a point in talking about it. For us, once the team comes and we start practise, we just enjoy. Obviously, they (Kohli and Rohit) do share their experience with others. I don’t even think we are talking anything about the 2027 World Cup,” Kotak said.