Virat Kohli revisits childhood

Summer vacation is a time to unwind, let your hair down, play unlimited games and have unadulterated fun. Virat Kohli, captain of Indian Test cricket team who was in Delhi recently, took a trip down memory lane and reminisced about his childhood spent in the capital and the joys of summer holidays. He said, “For me, the vacations were all about aiming to finish my holiday homework in a week’s time. But funnily enough, it never worked out like that. I always sat two days prior to the school reopening to finish it.”

Virat, who was here to announce ‘Smaaash Sachin Virat Cricket Carnival’ that will bring 2,000 teams across India to compete against each other, recalled, “Back in the old days while I was growing up, the idea of enjoying vacations was pretty basic and there wasn’t much to explore in terms of gaming. I still remember how one coin used to cost around Rs 10 allowing us just a small duration to play a game at an arcade. There were only limited virtual arcade cabins and they were too expensive and beyond our budget. Besides this, my usual fun activity involved playing cricket or badminton with friends and members of the society where I used to stay.”  

Virat shared that with changing times there are many interesting gaming options, both indoor and outdoor, that youngsters can explore. He said, “In earlier times, playing games was a very organic process since you could just go outdoors and play. These days one can go out and play outdoor games and if you are indoors, you have television and consoles and other exciting virtual games at your disposal.”

The 27-year-old cricketer has made history by becoming the first batsman to score more than 2,000 T20 runs in a single venue during his brilliant hundred at the Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. The skipper had scored 2,042 runs in Royal Challengers Bangalore’s home ground. When quizzed if it was easier to hit the boundaries and score runs at Chinnaswamy stadium as compared to scoring at a gaming arcade, Virat quipped, “Chinnaswamy stadium it is! I have gotten used to playing there as compared to a gaming arena, where you have to really hone your skills to ace the game. It is difficult to score runs there and the difficulty level is way higher, as you don’t know when the ball is released and how to play the shots in a virtual space.”

If Virat were to host a party for friends in an interactive and entertaining gaming centre, which special occasion would he pick? “I would love to host a fun-filled birthday party for my friends at any gaming complex,” he laughed.

Offering his fans a glimpse of a new facet of himself, the youth icon will soon be heard rapping for the 2016 anthem of the Premier Futsal league (a multi-national league conceptualised by Indian entrepreneurs) composed by music maestro A.R. Rahman.

The skipper also welcomed Anil Kumble, the recently appointed coach of National Cricket Team, saying he was looking forward to working with the legendary leg-spinner. “Heartiest welcome to @anilkumble1074 Sir. Look forward to your tenure with us. Great things in store for Indian Cricket with you ??” Virat had tweeted after Kumble’s appointment as head coach for a one-year term.