'I believed I am the man': Viv Richards tells Kohli about his mindset while batting
Mumbai: "I believed I am the man," answered former West Indies legend Viv Richards when India skipper Virat Kohli asked about his mindset while opting to bat without a helmet.
Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) posted a video on their website in which Kohli turned anchor for the 67-year-old.
Special: @imVkohli in conversation with @ivivianrichards (Part 1)
— BCCI (@BCCI) August 22, 2019
King Kohli turns anchor and quizzes the Caribbean Master to understand his fearless mindset - by @28anand
Full interview 🎥 - https://t.co/HHGvlzfFEi pic.twitter.com/ikl7oifKSi
"Whenever I have seen videos of you walking out, you're in a hat, no helmets back then. Even when there were after a point you chose not to because it was something that made you feel like you have the belief and you are chewing gum."
"I know the pitches were not as prepared or as covered back then. What was it like? What went through your head walking out knowing that you don't have that sort of protection, there is no restriction on bouncers and then you go out and dominate like that. What did you feel from the time you left the changing room till you got to the pitch. What was the mindset?" Kohli asked.
"I believed I am the man. It may sound arrogant but I always felt that I was involved in a game that I knew. I would back myself every time. But the helmet I tried, I am not going to lie and tell you. But, it felt a little uncomfortable. So I felt my cap, my maroon cap which was given to me. I felt so proud with that. My mindset was that if I am good enough to be here, if I get hurt it's god's will," Richards replied.
Kohli answered his own question and said that he would prefer getting a blow early on so that he gets to know the feeling.
"I always feel like it's better to get hit early on and get to know the feeling rather than always feeling like you might get hit. So, I prefer actually getting hit early on and really hard so it motivates me even further not allow that to happen again, just that pain to go through your body and be like - okay enough, it's not happening again," Kohli said.
The Indian cricket team is currently in West Indies and have already trounced West Indies in T20I and ODI series.
India will compete against West Indies for the first Test match on August 22
