IPL 2020: ‘Virat Kohli has come back in much better shape, he is at his best weight’

'He (Virat Kohli) had the time to be very specific with his meal plans and running intervals at home. He did not have much of a choice during the lockdown and he invested on a treadmill and worked on his endurance which is otherwise not possible during a packed calendar'

Dubai: Despite no cricket for more than six months due to the coronavirus (COVID-19) pandemic, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Virat Kohli has returned to training in “much better shape”.

Kohli and his RCB teammates have started preparations for the 13th edition of the Indian Premier League (IPL 2020). They are based in Dubai. IPL 2020 will be played in Abu Dhabi, Dubai and Sharjah from September 19 to November 10.

Now, RCB’s strength and conditioning coach Shanker Basu has revealed that Kohli is at his “best weight” at the moment.

“He has come back in much better shape. He is at his best weight at the moment and his movement patterns are pretty much in sync with his best self in the past. He has taken this break as an opportunity to work on all the pointers which needed attention from a physical point,” Basu told news agency PTI.

“He had the time to be very specific with his meal plans and running intervals at home. He did not have much of a choice during the lockdown and he invested on a treadmill and worked on his endurance which is otherwise not possible during a packed calendar. He did shuttle running in his apartment, which had a little space. With all these constraints, the attitude stood out more than the workout.

“His customised strength work to compliment that was his mantra during the lockout. So a combination of running and strength work and he kept it simple by just following this to the T,” he added.

During the coronavirus lockdown, Kohli had posted videos of his workouts at home. He is one of the fittest cricketers in the world.