Pakistan’s crushing win over Hong Kong has paved the way for Round 2 of one of the greatest rivalries in world cricket – India vs Pakistan. Yes, twice in two weeks the mother of all battles will come to the Dubai International Stadium and on your TV screens as part of the Asia Cup 2022. And ahead of the much-anticipated clash, the one and Virat Kohli decided to test himself like never before as he underwent an unusual training session at the ICC Cricket Academy Ground in Dubai. Kohli, who returned to top-flight cricket through the Asia Cup and has started off rather well with scores of 35 and an unbeaten 59 is ready to push himself to the next level as another enthralling India-Pakistan contest awaits.
Two days ahead of the match, India had an optional training session, which does not require all players to take part it. Ideally, top players are not part of this but on Friday, Kohli did engage in it and pulled off a training we haven’t seen him do. Kohli had one of those high-altitude face masks on, one that makes you feel what it is like in the hills, where the air pressure is low. Kohli has been spotted wearing the same masks, but all the previous instances have been while training in the gym. This was one of the rare occasions where Kohli trained with the mask on.
Kohli took short sprints on the grounds. He completed one sprint, took a 30-second break and went at it again, which is a cardio activity that enhances the heart and lung capacities. And the high-altitude masks create a situation where the oxygen supply is stifled and a very limited amount enters your lungs. Ideally, when someone visits the hills, it is advised that he or she doesn’t do much running and instead get the body acclimatise to the conditions. But for Kohli to do it suggests that the former India captain is preparing his body to prepare to perform more in less oxygen, so that once he runs without the mask, the outcome is a lot better.
Another example of this is athletes tying their legs with gigantic tyres and sprinting. That is done because is that scenario, they need to put in more energy, so that when the time comes for the big competition, running becomes easier and the pace increases. Similarly, without the mask, Kohli’s performance will enhance as compared to when he runs with the gear on. He can run well between the wicket, field and going by Kohli’s practice, we assume that is exactly what he intended to do.
So far, Kohli has looked absolutely fine since his return. While the batting may have come across as scratchy in patches, the same cannot be said about his performances on the field. However, since these are still early days, probably Kohli just does not want to take a chance and tick all boxes as India gear up for a few interesting matches involving Pakistan, Sri Lanka and Afghanistan in the Super Four and quite possibly, the Asia Cup final.