Virat Kohli Pays Tribute To Basketball Legend Kobe Bryant

In the week gone by, the sporting world struck with a major loss, as Kobe Bryant passed away in a helicopter crash. It took his million fans by a shock, as no one expected it to come. On Tuesday, the skipper of the Indian National Cricket Team paid tribute to the legendary sportsperson.

Bryant has inspired a generation of basketball players worldwide with sublime skills.

The basketball world and Los Angeles Lakers reacted with an outpouring of pain and disbelief. Bryant, aged 41, and his 13-year-old daughter Gianna were among nine people killed when a helicopter, they were travelling in, crashed amid foggy conditions and burst into flames in the hills of Calabasas in suburban Los Angeles.

I am bracing life and I am appreciating it – Virat Kohli

Speaking to the media a day before the first One-Day International (ODI) against hosts New Zealand at Seddon Park in Hamilton, the India skipper remembered how he used to wake up in the morning to watch NBA matches. Kohli said Bryant’s death “was heartbreaking” and “a shock for everyone”.

“It was heartbreaking, it was a shock for everyone. I grew up watching those NBA games in the morning when someone passes away like that, it does put everything in perspective. You get inspired by watching someone, but you understand at the end of the day, life can be so fickle,” Kohli told reporters.

“Sometimes, we get to too caught up thinking about the game, about what shot to play, what ball we need to ball, but we forget to live life. It has put everything in perspective for me. I am bracing life and I am appreciating it. You want to enjoy every moment that you are going through, what you are doing in a day is the not most important thing, the most important thing is life itself,” he added.

Kohli is currently doing his responsibility as the skipper of Team India in New Zealand. Under his captaincy, India whitewashed New Zealand in T20I series and are raring to do well in the upcoming three ODI games against the same opposition.

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