Known for his strong and aggressive approach on the field, the Indian cricket team captain has revealed that he had suffered from depression and felt he like "the loneliest guy in the world” after a string of failures with the bat during the tour of England in 2014.
In an interview with Mark Nicholas on the ‘Not just cricket’ podcast, Kohli spoke about how he went through his tough phase during the England tour where he just scored 134 runs in five Tests at an average of 13.50 in 10 innings.
“It's not a great feeling to wake up knowing that you won't be able to score runs and I think all batsmen have felt that at some stage that you are not in control of anything at all," he recalled,” Kohli recalled.
On being asked whether he had suffered from depression, he said, “Yes, I did.”
"You just don't understand how to get over it. That was a phase when I literally couldn't do anything to overturn things...I felt like I was the loneliest guy in the world," he said of the England tour.
Kohli remembered how he felt lonely despite having supportive people in his life. He feels professional help was what he needed at that time.
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"Personally, for me, 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 who 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,” Kohli said.
The Indian captain also believes that mental health issues should not be brushed under the carpet as it can destroy a person’s career.
Someone whom 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 said.
A lot of people suffer with that feeling for longer periods of time, it carries on for months, it carries on for a whole cricket season, people are not able to get out of it. I strongly feel the need for professional help there to be very honest," he added.
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