'Felt Like The Loneliest Guy In The World': Virat Kohli Opens Up About His Battle With Depression

Virat Kohli is one of the best batsmen in cricket not just in modern times but overall as well. He is widely regarded for his consistency in scoring runs in all formats of cricket. 

Despite being a consistent batsman, Virat Kohli has had a few series where even he couldn't middle the ball from his bat. One such series was back in 2014 which is considered Kohli's nightmare series. 

In a conversation with Mark Nicholas on the 'Not Just Cricket' podcast, Kohli revealed he suffered depression at that time. 

"Yes, I did," Kohli revealed. 

Kohli averaged 13.50 on that tour of England and had the highest score of 39 in 10 innings. He said he didn't have the confidence of getting up in the morning knowing he won't be able to score runs. 

"…it’s not a great feeling to wake up knowing that you won’t be able to score runs and I think all batsmen have felt that at some stage that you are not in control of anything at all,” Virat Kohli recalled. 

The Indian captain with an average of over 50 in all formats of cricket, said he felt lonely despite being surrounded by supportive people. 

“You just don’t understand how to get over it. That was a phase when I literally couldn’t do anything to overturn things…I felt like I was the loneliest guy in the world,” he said. 

“Personally, for me, that was a revelation that you could feel that lonely even though you a part of a big group," Kohli added. 

Kohli recalled that he needed professional help but couldn't. He advocated the need for a change regarding the issues related to Mental Health. 

“I think I would like to see it change. Someone whom you can go to at any stage, have a conversation around and say ‘Listen this is what I am feeling, I am finding it hard to even go to sleep, I feel like I don’t want to wake up in the morning," the Indian captain said. 

Virat Kohli is currently leading the Indian team against England in four-test matches, and limited-overs series.