IPL 2021: Show intensity even in practice: Kohli to Maxwell & Co

Ahead of their opening match of the Indian Premier League 2021 seaso on Friday, Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) skipper Virat Kohli gave a pep talk to his teammates, asking the new recruits to show intensity on the field even during practice sessions.

Glenn Maxwell, Kyle Jamieson and Daniel Christian are among the eight players that the Bengaluru franchise bought this season. Sachin Baby, Mohammed Azharuddeen, Rajat Patidar, Suyash Prabhudessai and K.S. Bharat are the others to join RCB this year.

"To all the new guys who have joined RCB -- welcome to this amazing group of guys. As you know from the guys that have played here in the past, the atmosphere and the energy throughout the season will be amazing," Kohli is seen telling his team members in a video posted by RCB on its Twitter handle.

"The only thing I expect from the guys is to make the most of the time spent of the field, whether it is practice sessions. Needless to mention, I expect guys to show intensity. That's the way we have always played and that will not change," Kohli added.

Kohli then touched on last year's performance when they qualified for the playoffs of the eight-team tournament.

"Last year was a great step in the right direction for us and I feel like our squad is even stronger this year. I expect good things to happen again," Kohli added.

"The focus [last year] was to make the most of the time we had, especially in our practice sessions. There was no mucking around, there was no wasting time. We were professionals in what we wanted to do and had a lot of fun as well through the season."

"If we all believe together, we can do some really specials things this season. All of us should look forward to it. I certainly look forward to it. So let's get off to a good start boys."

"I am backing you, the management is backing you. Players who have been selected, we believe they are going to contribute to the culture that RCB has, and to the plans that we're going to execute on the field," the RCB captain said.