Shoulders firm, eyes affixed on the flighted leather ball, the feet movement lyrical, Virat Kohli pounces on the ball. The Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) skipper can be seen playing his signature extra-cover drive and a wide range of shots in a recent net session clip, which was posted by the franchise’s twitter handle on Saturday.

With nine days away from playing their first game of the Indian Premier League (IPL) season against Sunrisers Hyderabad on September 21 in Dubai, the Indian skipper, praising his teammates, said, “[I’m] very happy with how the team is shaping up and from fitness point-of-view, everyone is looking great and in good shape.”

Kohli opened up about the preparations and the drills that the Bangalore-side has been going for the past two weeks in the United Arab Emirates (UAE). 

“After five months, it’s a bit different to try and get back in the frame of mind which you usually want to be in. It takes a bit of time, so heading into these sessions, now, where we’re batting mostly in the middle with hitting angles in the field and understanding the pace of the wicket and all those things,” said Kohli, who will be on the hunt for his maiden IPL title. 

However, the IPL’s leading run-scorer admitted, “Few shoulders were sore initially. We threw after months and suddenly you realise that a few muscles are asleep. So I think the guys are getting back into the intensity levels that you want.” 

Underlining the importance of training with the right intensity and not overdoing it, Kohli said, “We didn’t want to be like a manic, doing six sessions in six days, we gave ample off time to the boys which we’ll continue to do along the course of these next few training sessions also.” 

We don’t want to push anyone into a niggle or an injury. We understand it’s been a while away from the game,” added the 31-year-old. 

Speaking in the video, Kohli, manifesting his content, said, “It’s a matter of feeling good and I think I’ve felt good from the first session onward. There are a few things you want to rectify along the way and once you reach your optimum mindset and you enter the competition; you want to stay in that as much as possible.”

Seeing Kohli in a good nick and middling the ball in the nets will surely leave the RCB fans hopeful for a miracle this time around.