(Image Credit: ANI)
Football star Sunil Chhetri was recently caught off record talking about Virat Kohli and his fitness program and the reason Kohli had sent him his fitness test results when he was in London taking tests, instead of going to the BCCI Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru, like most players under centrally contracted contracts.
As he described in one of the podcasts, Kohli sent him some of his marks in real time: ‘Kohli texted me some of his marks on one of the exams he was do doing.’ This disclosure comes after controversy surrounding Kohli absconding a trip to India to undertake obligatory pre season fitness tests and doing so in London, a move that has cast its fair share of doubt among fans and the media. This has raised questions due to the difference between Kohli testing in London and the Bengaluru sessions of the others. But Chhetri in his anecdote when he seems happy to be the recipient of the communication loop of Kohli is more positive and collaborative. This shows that elite Indian athletes in their respective fields have mutual respect and suggests that Kohli wanted to re assure himself and fellow colleagues that he was going about things correctly.
This sign goes beyond the domain of camaraderie, it talks to Kohli of keeping in optimal physical shape even beyond regular procedures. He is still playing in ODIs and hopes to have a swansong in the 2027 Cricket World Cup in South Africa, Namibia and Zimbabwe. We were not told the details of the scores exchanged but the message shared by Chhetri seems categorical, Kohli is doing his fitness targets wherever he goes. In a sport more and more data driven, responsibility, even a personal disclosure of numbers, can be encouraging and inspiring.
Beyond that, the episode sparks debate concerning uniformity in the procedures of fitness testing and concessions made to senior players. However, the version of Chhetri presents it in a different light, it is not a controversial story, but a story of discipline, peer relationships, and professionalism.
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