Feel embarrassed when I am compared to Tendulkar: Kohli

'Nobody should be compared with Sachin and Viv Richards because they revolutionised the game in their era.'

Virat Kohli said he feels embarrassed when people compare him with Sachin Tendulkar and stated that the legendary cricketer has been a source of inspiration for him.

"I just laugh it off every time. These people have no idea about the game. I feel embarrassed when I am compared to Sachin though I get where these people are coming from with all those statistics and stuff. But these stats tell you a different story. The impact a player leaves on you as a child growing up is very different," Kohli said in an interview with former India player Robin Uthappa on Jio Cinema.

Kohli said nobody should be compared with Sachin and Viv Richards because they revolutionised the game in their era.

"Sachin Tendulkar always has been emotion for me, if you speak to anyone, they look at him as their own because everyone has faith and trust in him, he was the source of inspiration and comfort, when he scored runs, life was good," Kohli said.

"Nobody should be compared with Sachin and Viv Richards because they revolutionised the game in their era and the belief people had in them was rare, it rare to have that belief in one player," he added.

Kohli praised the Kolkata Knight Riders' young batter Rinku Singh.

"Today in IPL there are so many match winners, people winning games out of nowhere. Like Rinku Singh hitting five sixes in five balls. I could not even think of doing stuff that these guys are doing. But they (Tendulkar and Richards) were doing so when nobody was doing it. That's why they are regarded as icons," he added.

Talking about his lean patch last year, Kohli revealed how his wife Anushka Sharma helped him to come out from a negative state of mind.

"Anushka's conversations with me have always been priceless, she tells me the truth and straight forward, if I would have left myself in that phase (Before the Asia Cup), I would have become an egoistic maniac - she brings me to base level for a normal guy."

Kohli has been in good form in IPL 2023, with 214 runs from four matches at a strike rate of 147.58, including three half-centuries.

• IPL 2023