'Results Were Outstanding': Virat Kohli Tells How Shankar Basu Helped Him Overcome Back Pain

He wrote, 'In the latter half of 2014, I was quite disturbed by back pain that did not seem to get cured. Every morning I had to work out for 45 minutes to loosen my back.

New Delhi: We all know that Indian captain Virat Kohli is a fitness freak. There was a period in his career when he was extremely troubled due to back pain but former Indian fitness coach Basu Shankar motivated him to lift weights which helped him join the list of fittest cricketers in the world.

He wrote, "In the latter half of 2014, I was quite disturbed by back pain that did not seem to get cured. Every morning I had to work out for 45 minutes to loosen my back, but it would get stiff again at any time of the day. Then Basu sir and I talked about lifting weights and bringing back all the strength in my body" he said.

Virat Kohli said, "At first, I wasn't convinced (about lifting), but the only thing Basu sir asked of me was trust. I had full faith in his knowledge and experience." "I remember our series against Sri Lanka in 2015. I started learning to lift weights from Basu sir. I studied the dynamics of lifting weights and realized that I was working towards something amazing." "The results were outstanding, which changed my perception of body strength," Kohli said. 

"Basu sir is the best S&C coach I've worked with, and his ability to make you feel at ease with his template is absolutely amazing. Never have I worked with someone who knew exactly how to transform my physique and performance according to my needs, not through a set template that was common to everyone.

"I truly believe through this book, one can dive into the details and the knowledge which can surely transform your perception of what training means, change the way you do things and how you feel about your physique after following the programme to the T, as Basu sir likes to say," Kohli added.