Few Indian cricketers in the modern era have been able to match Virat Kohli in fitness standards. The meticulous attention to workouts and recovery has made Kohli one of the fittest Indian cricketers around and also on the global stage. In the UAE for Indian Premier League (IPL) 2020, Kohli has been training with his team Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) in Dubai. He posted pictures on social media from one such training session. The RCB skipper is seen having a net, playing football with teammates as warm-up and cooling himself down with an ice bath. “Proper session + proper humidity + great recovery @RCBTweets” is how Kohli captioned the post.
Kohli's RCB has never won the IPL despite having made the final on three occasions.
The league has been moved out of India this year due to the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic in the world's second-most populous country that has the third-highest number of coronavirus cases in the world.
However, the IPL will be played inside a bio-bubble with strict protocols for social distancing and other precautionary measures. Kohli has implored all players to adhere to the protocols and as they are “not here to have fun”.
“We are all here to play cricket...The bio-bubble needs to be respected at all times for the tournament to happen eventually. We are not here to have fun and roam around and you know say that 'I want to hang out in Dubai,'” said Kohli recently.
The IPL begins on September 19 and the final will be played on November 10.