"I think it has got to do with the family, my father was a Leo, he could fight. He always believed in himself. I think it comes a bit from the family plus growing up in the Delhi system," Kohli told Australian all-rounder Glenn Maxwell in a video blog for Cricket Australia.
"It wasn't easy, you always had to fight to go up the system and that makes you mentally tough. You stop worrying about things around you and focus on what you want," he added.
"When I came to the international level, I wanted to be the player which the opposition wanted out. I never wanted to be just another player in the XI.
I always wanted to be
somebody who the opposition wanted to get out first," he said.
Kohli also spoke about how Sachin Tendulkar
Helped him
become a better cricketer.
"I started playing cricket because of him and I was inspired to do the things that he did playing for the country," the 27-year-old said.
Kohli also felt the IPL has brought international rivals closer.
"If I didn't know (Mitchell Starc) Starcy I would have never known what a sweet guy he is," Kohli said of his Royal Challengers Bangalore teammate.
"He's a wonderful human being. You form perceptions without knowing people and I think the IPL lets you lift those boundaries and actually be friends with people who you play against," he added.
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