Virat Kohli has opened up about how the Indian Premier League’s camera culture is changing the day-to-day experience of players, calling the constant surveillance during practice sessions “uncomfortable” and often intrusive. The Royal Challengers Bengaluru batter said cricketers should be able to work on their skills without every movement being recorded, shared, and later dissected across social media.
As one of the most closely watched names in world cricket, Kohli is followed relentlessly both during matches and in everyday moments around the franchise setup. From net sessions and training drills to informal conversations, much of what players do quickly becomes content online. While Kohli acknowledged that fan engagement and digital storytelling are now central to modern cricket, he argued that the balance has tipped too far.
Speaking on the RCB Podcast, Kohli described how hard it is to concentrate on improvement when multiple lenses trail him from the moment he arrives at practice. “You walk into practice and there are six cameras following you. Honestly, it doesn’t feel comfortable at all. As an athlete, you need space and freedom to work on your game. If everything you do becomes something to film, display, or analyse, then it’s not really natural,” Kohli said.
The 37-year-old added that players often try out new ideas and techniques during training, but the anxiety of those attempts being circulated publicly can affect how they practice. “I’m not going to attempt certain things at practice that I really want to try, because I know that tomorrow someone might film it and there will be conversations about my session. People should judge me on my performances in the game, not on what happens in the lead-up. Nobody has the right to judge my preparation—what I’m trying in the nets,” he added.
Kohli also stressed the need for clearer boundaries around consent and access behind the scenes, even as social media remains a key part of the IPL’s commercial and branding machine. “There needs to be more streamlining—clarity on how much is captured, when it is captured, and whether the player is okay with being filmed all the time. Those aspects really must be considered because it becomes too much. I enjoy the pressure of the match, but I don’t enjoy the pressure that comes with everything else. Social media is a major part of a team’s commercial representation and fan engagement, and that’s understandable,” Kohli said.
He further noted that the surge in official fan pages and franchise-linked content didn’t arrive overnight; it grew over time, which meant players were not fully prepared for the level of continuous attention from the start of the league. “I genuinely feel there has to be more streamlining. If you look at how official fan clubs and official fan pages have grown, it happened after a long period—when the IPL was already well underway. So this is not something people were ready for from day one,” Kohli remarked.
Kohli also shared an example from a recent conversation involving Kane Williamson during RCB’s IPL 2026 meeting with the Lucknow Super Giants, describing how even a private exchange became difficult because of cameras and the league’s roaming Champak robot. “I was talking to Kane the other day, and that robot was just waving at me. I’m thinking, ‘Why is this thing waving at me?’ I’m speaking to Kane about something serious. I first ignored the dog, then I told the person controlling it, ‘Please take him away. Let me talk in peace.’ Kane is my friend. I can’t even have a conversation with him without it turning into a ‘moment’,” Kohli said.
While he highlighted the strain of life off the pitch, Kohli’s batting has continued to deliver in the IPL. He recently struck his ninth IPL century against Kolkata Knight Riders and has compiled 484 runs in 12 matches so far this season, posting an average of 53.78 and a strike rate of 165.75.
