Virat Kohli Hails Hockey Stars as Fittest; Says Cricketers Are Only 15% of Their Level

At the RCB Innovation Lab Indian Sports Summit in Bengaluru, Virat Kohli made a surprising confession. He said that Indian hockey players are way ahead of cricketers when it comes to fitness.

𝘍𝘪𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐𝘤𝘦! 🔥 x 🧊

Mo Bobat bringing the boldness with the ‘𝗵𝘂𝗻𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝗺𝗶𝗻𝗱𝘀𝗲𝘁’ philosophy, Virat Kohli bringing the calm and assurance with his ‘𝗶𝘁’𝘀 𝗼𝗸’ motto – the duo enthralled the audience at the 3rd edition of the RCB Innovation Lab Indian… pic.twitter.com/IYaztjNUIu

— Royal Challengers Bengaluru (@RCBTweets) May 20, 2026

During a session on peak performance, Virat Kohli told the audience that the physical demands of hockey are far greater than cricket. He even put a number to it. According to him, cricketers are only at about 15 percent of the fitness level that hockey players have.

His words were noticed quickly. Hockey India and stars like captain Harmanpreet Singh welcomed the shoutout. They felt happy that one of India’s biggest sportspersons recognized their hard work.

Shuttler PV Sindhu also spoke at the event. She praised Kohli as a grounded mentor who always tries to lift others around him.

Kohli also opened up about his own journey. He named tough opponents like James Anderson and admitted that he still feels imposter syndrome even after playing for two decades. He credited Rahul Dravid for giving him mental support during tough times.

                                               

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