Virat Kohli: I draw inspiration from Cristiano Ronaldo

“I take a lot of inspiration from Cristiano Ronaldo. The way he has stayed on top for so many years, it’s nothing but down to hard work. I have heard he is the most hardworking footballer in the world and that’s why he is where he is,” Kohli told ecb.co.uk.

“Messi is a freak (genius) but this guy (Ronaldo) is giving him run for his money because of his hard work.”

Kohli, named captain of ICC's ODI team of the year, had a remarkable 2016 both with the bat and as captain as the team went undefeated for 18 Tests and also regain the No 1 Test ranking.

“It can be put down to understanding my game a lot better than I used to. Being happy with the ability I have, the sort of drawbacks that I have. I understand my flaws and strengths nicely,” he said.

“It’s also about finding the right balance. People talk about not having flaws and it’s wrong. Everyone has flaws and consistency is nothing but overcoming those flaws and finding the ability to score runs in Test format, especially which I wanted to find within my game. I feel in happy space knowing exactly where my game is going.”

Kohli stressed on the importance of thriving under pressure, saying that he embraces it as one can’t run away from it.

“It’s about how you perceive that situation. It’s very similar when you go out to bat. Either you see four slips standing at the back or you see the boundaries only,” he said.

“The external pressure, I have started enjoying it rather than running away from it because if I run away from it, it may come back to hound me and catch me and put me down to a level that I can’t imagine. So I have to take it along with me and find a way to deal with it.”