Virat Kohli has grown into one of the greatest batsmen cricket has ever seen and New Zealand captain Kane Williamson has revealed that he forecast an illustrious career for the Indian captain when they locked horns in the U-19 World Cup in 2008.

Williamson, who was in the opposite camp as India clashed with New Zealand in the semi-finals, said Kohli had all the attributes to make it to senior level in international cricket.

“You can see it was only a matter of time for him. He was making pretty strong inroads into the full international scene,” Williamson was quoted as saying during Star Sports’ chat show Cricket Connected.

Since the semi-final that India won, Kohli and Williamson have remained competitors on the field but good friends off it.

And Williamson felt that Kohli’s maturity helped him go to the next level. “At the moment, leading the way and setting the standard as a cricketer and setting all these records. A lot of that has to do with his maturity and his ability to make very good decisions. Not only is he gifted with his natural ability but this constant drive to improve and just be better day in day out.”

Read: I admire Virat Kohli a lot, his record is simply incredible: Steve Smith

Indian wicketkeeper-batsman Dinesh Karthik who also played for India at the U-19 World Cup, feels the key behind Kohli’s success has been his focus on fitness.

Kohli is currently the top-ranked batsmen in one-day international cricket as per the ICC rankings and is second only to Australia’s Steve Smith in Tests.

“The biggest change in Kohli has been his attitude towards the sport. He always worked on his skill, he has always been a fierce competitor. Those things have stayed in him. The fact that he brought fitness into his game and took it to such a level that the fitter he got, the better he got as a player in terms of skill sets, the tactical aspect,” Karthik said on the show.

“The transformation he has brought in himself is massive. I feel when the players are tired, when a tour gets tough, those critical moments when people are probably tired, get tired mentally and the body says the same, he pushes, he’s able to give that extra push,” he added.

‘Body in zombie mode’

Speaking about how he has been tackling the coronavirus-forced lockdown, Karthik said the lack of activity has put his body in a “zombie mode.”

“I think the transition will be very tough. I think players will need at least a minimum of four weeks, you need to start slowly, first it will be quality and then slowly increase the quantity and then the intensity,” he said.

“Right now the lockdown has eased a lot in Chennai, so you can get permission and go and practice, so I am planning to do that but I will do it gradually... the body has been completely in zombie mode, with me sitting at home and not doing much.”

Just like most others in India, it has been more than two months since Indian cricketers have been confined to their homes due to the nationwide lockdown to contain Covid-19. With inter-state travel still banned in the country, India bowling coach Bharat Arun has asked the cricketers to avail the grounds of their respective home states to do running and focus on their skill work.