DUBAI: India captain Virat Kohli on Saturday said that players need "periodic breaks" from bio-bubble life to refresh themselves as he advocated a balanced approach while dealing with the circumstances arising out of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Kohli said risking players' well-being "to cover up" lack of cricket due to the pandemic will not benefit the game.
"It's necessary to have a balanced approach, it's important to give players periodic breaks, where they can get mentally refreshed and come into the environment, where they can again compete, this is important,” Kohli said at the pre-match press conference ahead of India's clash against arch-rivals Pakistan in their T20 World Cup opening match.
"Going forward, it's necessary that this thing needs to be considered. I understand that for a long-time cricket has not happened in the world, but to cover up that if you ask a player to risk, I don't think world cricket will benefit from it,” he added.
Mental stress associated with strict bio-bubble life has been a hot topic of discussion worldwide. It has affected a lot of players across international teams.
Stressing that one cannot tell where an individual is placed mentally in a bio-bubble, Kohli said the team management needs communication with the players in this regard.
“Players need to be communicated where they are placed, what they want. You cannot tell who is mentally at which stage individually in a bio-bubble. If you see 5-6 people (players) happy, you cannot determine that all 15-16 people (players) are feeling the same way."
Kohli, however, said a tournament like the ongoing T20 World Cup gives players motivation.
“The good thing is we have just played the IPL with eight teams, every day was a new challenge, you are involved as the tournament builds up in order to achieve your goal,” said Kohli.
“World Cup gives you different motivation being a multinational tournament. you have the opportunity to face many international sides whom you may not have faced before. So, new challenges come up that help you keep your focus intact.
"But going forward, it (stress due to bio-bubble life) is important to consider that,” he signed off.
