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Proud of your success: Sachin Tendulkar reacts after Virat Kohli opens up about battle with depression

WION Web Team
New Delhi, IndiaUpdated: Feb 20, 2021, 03:35 PM IST
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Photograph:(PTI)

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Former Indian cricketer and a legend of the game, Sachin Tendulkar on Saturday reacted to Virat Kohli opening up about his battle with depression, where the Indian captain also revealed how a conversation with the Master Blaster "opened up" his mindset.  

Former Indian cricketer and a legend of the game, Sachin Tendulkar on Saturday reacted to Virat Kohli opening up about his battle with depression, where the Indian captain also revealed how a conversation with the Master Blaster "opened up" his mindset.  

Tendulkar took to social media platform Twitter as he wrote he is proud of his success and decision to share personal experiences. The former Indian cricketer added that these days youngsters are relentlessly judged on social media while adding we need to listen to them and help them flourish. 

".@imVkohli, proud of your success & decision to share such personal experiences. These days youngsters are constantly judged on social media. Thousands speak about them but not to them. We need to be able to listen to them and help them flourish,” Tendulkar tweeted. 

Sachin Tendulkar tweet on Virat Kohli

Kohli, on Mark Nicholas’ podcast 'Not Just Cricket' said that he felt depressed during India's tour of England in 2014 – when he went through the worst form of his life – but said that a chat with Tendulkar helped him during that phase. 

"I did have a chat with him about the mental side of things as well and the thing that he told me was, in cricket what he experienced was if you are going through a strong negative feeling and if that is coming into your system regularly, it is best to let it pass. If you start fighting that feeling, it grows stronger. So, that is the advice I took on board and my mindset really opened up from then on," Kohli told renowned broadcaster Mark Nicholas on the latter’s podcast ‘Not Just Cricket’. 

The Indian skipper further revealed he failed to understand how he would get over the phase while adding he felt like he was the "loneliest guy" in the world.  

"I did (feel depressed). It's not a great feeling when wake up knowing that you won't be able to score any runs and I think all batsmen have felt that at some stage or the other that you are not in control of anything at all. And you just don't understand how to get over it. I think when you look back at a very difficult phase, you realise that you had to go through that phase fully to be able to understand what is wrong and rectify and move forward and open yourself up for change. That was a phase where I literally couldn't do anything to overturn what I was going through. I felt like I was the loneliest guy in the world," said Kohli, recalling the England tour back in 2014. 

Kohli had averaged a mere 13.50 in India's tour of England in 2014 where he failed to even register a half-century in 10 innings.  

He also said: "For me, personally, that was a revelation that you could feel that lonely even though you a part of a big group. I won't say I didn't have people that I could speak to but not having a professional to speak to who could understand what I am going through completely, I think is a huge factor. I think I would like to see it change. Someone that 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. I have no confidence in myself, what do I do?'" 

Kohli will be seen in action against England when both teams take the field for the third Test in Ahmedabad from February 24.