{"id":10943,"date":"2026-05-19T17:12:39","date_gmt":"2026-05-19T17:12:39","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice"},"modified":"2026-05-19T17:12:39","modified_gmt":"2026-05-19T17:12:39","slug":"impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice","title":{"rendered":"Impostor Syndrome Still Lingers for Virat Kohli, Says Ahead of Practice"},"content":{"rendered":"<p>NEW DELHI: Virat Kohli has described how \u201cimpostor syndrome\u201d continues to linger for him, even after a long stretch as one of cricket\u2019s most decorated performers. Speaking at the RCB Innovation Lab Indian Sports Summit in Bengaluru, the former India captain said that self-doubt never fully disappears, and that it can surface during everyday practice despite nearly two decades at the top level.<\/p>\n<h2>Key takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li>Kohli said the feeling of not being \u201cgood enough\u201d can stay with him throughout his career, even after years of success.<\/li>\n<li>He admitted that when he steps into the nets, he still imagines younger players judging a less-than-ideal session.<\/li>\n<li>Rahul Dravid and Vikram Rathour, Kohli revealed, were especially influential in helping him regain mental comfort after he left the captaincy.<\/li>\n<li>Kohli linked the emotional toll of leading India across formats to a difficult Test period between 2020 and 2022.<\/li>\n<li>He noted that captains often prioritise the team so heavily that they overlook their own wellbeing.<\/li>\n<li>Kohli advised emerging players to learn their limits before obsessing over workload management.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Self-doubt remains, even at the highest level<\/h2>\n<p>Kohli explained that players live on a fine boundary between being overly cautious and becoming insecure. In his view, the mind can keep replaying the same question\u2014whether you are truly good enough\u2014long after you have proved yourself. \u201cAs players, you\u2019re always walking a very thin line between being careful and being insecure. You constantly feel like you\u2019re never good enough\u2014impostor syndrome is always there,\u201d Kohli said.<\/p>\n<p>He added that the mindset can still appear in routine training. Even when he is in the nets, Kohli said he finds himself thinking about who is watching from the other side. \u201cEven today, when I go into the nets, I still think: these youngsters are watching. If I have a bad session, they\u2019ll probably wonder, \u2018Is this the guy who\u2019s been playing for 20 years?\u2019 That thought is always there,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n<h2>Support from Dravid and Rathour after stepping down<\/h2>\n<p>Turning to the next chapter of his career, Kohli said Rahul Dravid and batting coach Vikram Rathour were central in helping him manage his mental state after he stepped down as India\u2019s captain. He described the strain of carrying the responsibilities of leadership across formats as emotionally draining, particularly during his challenging Test spell that stretched from 2020 to 2022.<\/p>\n<p>Kohli said Dravid\u2019s understanding came from having gone through similar pressures at the highest level, while Rathour also offered years of experience and perspective. \u201cRahul bhai understood that because he had experienced it himself at the highest level. Vikram had been around for years too. They understood what I was feeling and genuinely took care of me mentally. That put me in a space where I could enjoy my cricket again,\u201d Kohli said.<\/p>\n<h2>Leadership and mental wellbeing<\/h2>\n<p>Kohli also spoke about how leadership can shape mental wellbeing. In his view, captains often become so focused on the team that they neglect to check in on themselves. He said he only later realised that he had not been asked about his own wellbeing for a long time\u2014pointing to a near nine-year stretch without anyone directly asking, \u201cHow are you doing?\u201d<\/p>\n<p>Despite the emotional challenges he described, Kohli said he would still take on leadership in the same manner if given the chance again. He also offered advice to younger players, suggesting that early in their careers it is better to understand one\u2019s real limits first rather than concentrating too heavily on workload management strategies.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>NEW DELHI: Virat Kohli has described how \u201cimpostor syndrome\u201d continues to linger for him, even after a long stretch as one of cricket\u2019s most decorated&hellip;<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":4,"featured_media":10942,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_yoast_wpseo_title":"Virat Kohli Impostor Syndrome: RCB Practice Update","_yoast_wpseo_metadesc":"Virat Kohli opens up on lingering impostor syndrome ahead of RCB practice, revealing how self-doubt can resurface even after years at cricket\u2019s top level.","footnotes":""},"categories":[2],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-10943","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-ipl"],"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v27.3 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/product\/yoast-seo-wordpress\/ -->\n<title>Virat Kohli Impostor Syndrome: RCB Practice Update<\/title>\n<meta name=\"description\" content=\"Virat Kohli opens up on lingering impostor syndrome ahead of RCB practice, revealing how self-doubt can resurface even after years at cricket\u2019s top level.\" \/>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"Virat Kohli Impostor Syndrome: RCB Practice Update\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Virat Kohli opens up on lingering impostor syndrome ahead of RCB practice, revealing how self-doubt can resurface even after years at cricket\u2019s top level.\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:url\" content=\"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:site_name\" content=\"1Win India\" \/>\n<meta property=\"article:published_time\" content=\"2026-05-19T17:12:39+00:00\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:image\" content=\"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/imposter-syndrome-always-there-virat-2cb5.webp\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:width\" content=\"1234\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:height\" content=\"700\" \/>\n\t<meta property=\"og:image:type\" content=\"image\/webp\" \/>\n<meta name=\"author\" content=\"Arjun Patel\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:card\" content=\"summary_large_image\" \/>\n<meta name=\"twitter:label1\" content=\"Written by\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data1\" content=\"Arjun Patel\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:label2\" content=\"Est. reading time\" \/>\n\t<meta name=\"twitter:data2\" content=\"3 minutes\" \/>\n<script type=\"application\/ld+json\" class=\"yoast-schema-graph\">{\"@context\":\"https:\\\/\\\/schema.org\",\"@graph\":[{\"@type\":\"Article\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#article\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice\"},\"author\":{\"name\":\"Arjun Patel\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/9aac810730409fd3131f08f34023f33e\"},\"headline\":\"Impostor Syndrome Still Lingers for Virat Kohli, Says Ahead of Practice\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-19T17:12:39+00:00\",\"mainEntityOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice\"},\"wordCount\":598,\"commentCount\":0,\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/imposter-syndrome-always-there-virat-2cb5.webp\",\"articleSection\":[\"IPL\"],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"CommentAction\",\"name\":\"Comment\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#respond\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"WebPage\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice\",\"name\":\"Virat Kohli Impostor Syndrome: RCB Practice Update\",\"isPartOf\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/#website\"},\"primaryImageOfPage\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#primaryimage\"},\"image\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#primaryimage\"},\"thumbnailUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/imposter-syndrome-always-there-virat-2cb5.webp\",\"datePublished\":\"2026-05-19T17:12:39+00:00\",\"author\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/9aac810730409fd3131f08f34023f33e\"},\"description\":\"Virat Kohli opens up on lingering impostor syndrome ahead of RCB practice, revealing how self-doubt can resurface even after years at cricket\u2019s top level.\",\"breadcrumb\":{\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#breadcrumb\"},\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"ReadAction\",\"target\":[\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice\"]}]},{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#primaryimage\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/imposter-syndrome-always-there-virat-2cb5.webp\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/wp-content\\\/uploads\\\/2026\\\/05\\\/imposter-syndrome-always-there-virat-2cb5.webp\",\"width\":1234,\"height\":700},{\"@type\":\"BreadcrumbList\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#breadcrumb\",\"itemListElement\":[{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":1,\"name\":\"Home\",\"item\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/\"},{\"@type\":\"ListItem\",\"position\":2,\"name\":\"Impostor Syndrome Still Lingers for Virat Kohli, Says Ahead of Practice\"}]},{\"@type\":\"WebSite\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/#website\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/\",\"name\":\"1Win India\",\"description\":\"\",\"potentialAction\":[{\"@type\":\"SearchAction\",\"target\":{\"@type\":\"EntryPoint\",\"urlTemplate\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/?s={search_term_string}\"},\"query-input\":{\"@type\":\"PropertyValueSpecification\",\"valueRequired\":true,\"valueName\":\"search_term_string\"}}],\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\"},{\"@type\":\"Person\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/#\\\/schema\\\/person\\\/9aac810730409fd3131f08f34023f33e\",\"name\":\"Arjun Patel\",\"image\":{\"@type\":\"ImageObject\",\"inLanguage\":\"en-US\",\"@id\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/3f44e79409232be03c88b435f2c295c5262fa91dfa5e23870d29241063bbaf5d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/3f44e79409232be03c88b435f2c295c5262fa91dfa5e23870d29241063bbaf5d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"contentUrl\":\"https:\\\/\\\/secure.gravatar.com\\\/avatar\\\/3f44e79409232be03c88b435f2c295c5262fa91dfa5e23870d29241063bbaf5d?s=96&d=mm&r=g\",\"caption\":\"Arjun Patel\"},\"description\":\"Cricket analyst and sports writer with over 10 years of experience covering international and domestic matches. Specializes in match predictions, player performance analysis, and data-driven insights, with a strong focus on the Indian Premier League\",\"url\":\"https:\\\/\\\/1win.za.com\\\/ipl\\\/author\\\/arjunpatel\"}]}<\/script>\n<!-- \/ Yoast SEO plugin. -->","yoast_head_json":{"title":"Virat Kohli Impostor Syndrome: RCB Practice Update","description":"Virat Kohli opens up on lingering impostor syndrome ahead of RCB practice, revealing how self-doubt can resurface even after years at cricket\u2019s top level.","robots":{"index":"index","follow":"follow","max-snippet":"max-snippet:-1","max-image-preview":"max-image-preview:large","max-video-preview":"max-video-preview:-1"},"canonical":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice","og_locale":"en_US","og_type":"article","og_title":"Virat Kohli Impostor Syndrome: RCB Practice Update","og_description":"Virat Kohli opens up on lingering impostor syndrome ahead of RCB practice, revealing how self-doubt can resurface even after years at cricket\u2019s top level.","og_url":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice","og_site_name":"1Win India","article_published_time":"2026-05-19T17:12:39+00:00","og_image":[{"width":1234,"height":700,"url":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/imposter-syndrome-always-there-virat-2cb5.webp","type":"image\/webp"}],"author":"Arjun Patel","twitter_card":"summary_large_image","twitter_misc":{"Written by":"Arjun Patel","Est. reading time":"3 minutes"},"schema":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@graph":[{"@type":"Article","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#article","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice"},"author":{"name":"Arjun Patel","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/#\/schema\/person\/9aac810730409fd3131f08f34023f33e"},"headline":"Impostor Syndrome Still Lingers for Virat Kohli, Says Ahead of Practice","datePublished":"2026-05-19T17:12:39+00:00","mainEntityOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice"},"wordCount":598,"commentCount":0,"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/imposter-syndrome-always-there-virat-2cb5.webp","articleSection":["IPL"],"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"CommentAction","name":"Comment","target":["https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#respond"]}]},{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice","url":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice","name":"Virat Kohli Impostor Syndrome: RCB Practice Update","isPartOf":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/#website"},"primaryImageOfPage":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#primaryimage"},"image":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#primaryimage"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/imposter-syndrome-always-there-virat-2cb5.webp","datePublished":"2026-05-19T17:12:39+00:00","author":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/#\/schema\/person\/9aac810730409fd3131f08f34023f33e"},"description":"Virat Kohli opens up on lingering impostor syndrome ahead of RCB practice, revealing how self-doubt can resurface even after years at cricket\u2019s top level.","breadcrumb":{"@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#breadcrumb"},"inLanguage":"en-US","potentialAction":[{"@type":"ReadAction","target":["https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice"]}]},{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#primaryimage","url":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/imposter-syndrome-always-there-virat-2cb5.webp","contentUrl":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-content\/uploads\/2026\/05\/imposter-syndrome-always-there-virat-2cb5.webp","width":1234,"height":700},{"@type":"BreadcrumbList","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/impostor-syndrome-still-lingers-for-virat-kohli-says-ahead-of-practice#breadcrumb","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"name":"Home","item":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/"},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"name":"Impostor Syndrome Still Lingers for Virat Kohli, Says Ahead of Practice"}]},{"@type":"WebSite","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/#website","url":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/","name":"1Win India","description":"","potentialAction":[{"@type":"SearchAction","target":{"@type":"EntryPoint","urlTemplate":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/?s={search_term_string}"},"query-input":{"@type":"PropertyValueSpecification","valueRequired":true,"valueName":"search_term_string"}}],"inLanguage":"en-US"},{"@type":"Person","@id":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/#\/schema\/person\/9aac810730409fd3131f08f34023f33e","name":"Arjun Patel","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","inLanguage":"en-US","@id":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3f44e79409232be03c88b435f2c295c5262fa91dfa5e23870d29241063bbaf5d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","url":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3f44e79409232be03c88b435f2c295c5262fa91dfa5e23870d29241063bbaf5d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","contentUrl":"https:\/\/secure.gravatar.com\/avatar\/3f44e79409232be03c88b435f2c295c5262fa91dfa5e23870d29241063bbaf5d?s=96&d=mm&r=g","caption":"Arjun Patel"},"description":"Cricket analyst and sports writer with over 10 years of experience covering international and domestic matches. Specializes in match predictions, player performance analysis, and data-driven insights, with a strong focus on the Indian Premier League","url":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/author\/arjunpatel"}]}},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10943","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/4"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=10943"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/10943\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/10942"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=10943"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=10943"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/1win.za.com\/ipl\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=10943"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}