The eight-time Olympic gold medalist and the fastest man on the planet Usain Bolt chose Virat Kohli as the member of his dream team in the relay races due to his extraordinary speed and fitness. He also added former Australian pacer Brett Lee and South African great Jonty Rhodes to his dream line up alongside Kohli.
Usain Bolt commended Kohli on the fact that he has made new standards of fitness in cricket. Kohli has been known to run fast between wicket and field and as such has influenced several young players to pay attention to fitness as a requisite component of their game.
Usain Bolt, when interviewer queried to name his dream relay team, told the India Today his list because he believed that the players he picked were not only fast and energetic but also athletic; attributes that best suited the theme of a relay race.
“We have been talking about this. I think Kohli. He is definitely quick. I know Brett Lee and I would say Jonty Rhodes.”
The 39-year-old also admitted to being a huge fan of Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara, and Courtney Walsh, who he grew up watching.
“Yeah, I grew up watching many cricketers. As I said, the guys that I named, like Jonty Rhodes, was one of the best fielders to ever do it. Courtney Walsh, Ambrose, Sachin Tendulkar, Brian Lara. There’s so much that I grew up watching all these guys over the years. I was a fan of all of them,” Bolt added.
The Jamaican sprinter retired in 2017, citing age and injury as the primary reasons for his drop in performance.
Virat Kohli set to make international comeback with the Australia tour
Meanwhile, the cricketer born in Delhi is to be part of ODI team in the forthcoming tour of Australia that will commence on October 19. The squad will be announced on Saturday, October 4 as Cricbuzz said.
The right hand batter has not featured in any action since the champions trophy 2025 final between India and New Zealand in March 2025 in Dubai. The veteran has not undertaken any competitive cricket since, most recently, the IPL 2025 final on June 3 when the Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) clinched its first title, after retiring the year before, i.e. in 2024, out of T20Is and in May 2025, out of Test matches.
