"Virat Kohli's fighting spirit, energy and passion make him a great": Richards

West Indies legend Sir Vivian Richards stated that Virat Kohlis fighting spirit energy and passion put him in the category of crickets great and legendary playersVivian Richards who has been a longtime admirer of Kohli also hailed the Indian for silencing the critics through his performancesWell I think he answers all of us really Before the World Cup for the ODIs where he wasnt doing that well and then he came back in magnificent form so that is true testament to the character that we are speaking about said Richards a governing council member for the International Master League during a virtual interactionThis is why I put him in the category of being great and legendary Not all the time that you get players who can come back when theyre down His fighting spirit energy and passion to do well make him stand outVivian Richards stated that if he was still playing he would love to have Virat Kohlis energy on the fieldAlso ReadIND vs NZ Mitchell Santner wins the toss and opts to bowlHis energy reflects his passion He goes to show you that his involvement in the game all the time Theres a passion for that Theres not a moment that goes on that field that Virat Kohli doesnt miss Hes just magnificent in that way he addedAsked about batters he admires the former West Indies captain said Kohli reminds him of himselfA lot of batsmen Before you had people like Sachin Tendulkar who has retired he saidBut presently Virat Kohli He reminds me of myself He who dares win He believes in himself 120 per cent confident at all times and whenever it needs to be aggressive and confront opponents you need guys like thatI appreciate seeing guys who especially when youre a captain you defend your team and defend the people who you are representing so Virat Kohli the modern day guy I love he addedRichards said given his fitness and hunger Kohli can go on to play ODIs for a long timeIll tell you something Just the way he is and the way how fit he is and the way he still believes very passionate about the game You never know He could still play when hes 50 he saidYou never know But its just magnificent to see Sometimes we see guys go on and maybe they come to an age and sometimes you look and you say wow he doesnt look as good as in the pastBut he just scored 100 just recently against Pakistan in Dubai so that says that and this has just happened This suggests that hes still very much at the very best in the best of form he addedOver the years the comparisons between Sachin Tendulkar and Virat Kohli have emerged Speaking about the comparison Vivian Richards declined itI dont believe in that We should be quite thankful that the periods that everyone would have passed through that the folks who saw these guys then benefited from the fact that they saw some very good player he saidI will never make comparisons They all did their time their work for the time that they represented their countries And we should appreciate that time because its not just us alone who would be giving the answer but all the folks the fans who would be watching would pay tribute to thatVivian Richards said India should be patient with the form of their skipper Rohit Sharma who has blown hot and cold with his formYouve got to give him all the opportunity He would have failed in the past I just believe that lets wait and see when we get to the semifinals and hopefully when you get to the semifinals youre hoping to get to the finals he saidLets see because sometimes some guys leave it a little late I still believe that Rohit is still a magnificent playerPlayers go through bad times It depends now on how well he comes through this and if he comes through this certainly hes going to be all for the better he addedWith PTI Inputs