Virat Kohli’s ‘Mystery’ Brown Band: What’s the Story Behind It?

Indian cricketer Virat Kohli scored his 50th ODI century against New Zealand in the semi-finals of the 2023 World Cup, breaking Sachin Tendulkar’s multi-year record of 49 centuries. Kohli even acknowledged the achievement by waving to the crowd and the legendary cricketer who was there in the stadium.

But a lot of people seem to have noticed something interesting about Kohli and that is his brown colored band which many mistook for the Apple Watch Ultra. Turns out, it’s another wearable fitness band from the Whoop brand that hasn’t been officially launched in India yet.

There are other athletes who have donned fitness bands in recent times, but Kohli is a marketer’s dream, even when they are not officially available in a market with an attractive youth population. So what is Whoop and this special band, how does it differ from the bands already available and how much does it cost?

Believe it or not, Whoop has been around for a while, in fact the first generation Whoop tracker was introduced back in 2015. Since then, the company has released several versions, with the latest being released in 2021, called Whoop. 4.0.

The first thing you’ll notice about the Whoop tracker is that it doesn’t have a screen, and what’s even better about the device is that you don’t have to take the band off your wrist to charge it.

These two features of the Whoop band have made it popular among elite athletes such as Kohli, LeBron James and many others. Not having to charge the device is an unheard of feature, and it has clearly appealed to athletes, especially since they can use it 24/7 to monitor their fitness level and other metrics.

Whoop works through a compatible app that can be used on iOS and Android phones. It can help you track blood oxygen levels, heart rate readings, and movement. The wearable isn’t just limited to the wrist, and the company says you can wear it anywhere on the body. Most of you may say that Whoop is up against brands like Garmin in its health, but the Apple Watch is a close match, albeit without a screen, making the app the entry point to the data collected by the Whoop band. It’s also uniquely priced, giving you coach service to the subscription area.

But how long will the Whoop band last? The company says that the battery lasts for about 3 days, and after that you just have to grab this cube-shaped device that charges the band so you don’t have to take it off.

Social media has been abuzz with the Whoop band ever since people started noticing during the matches, and it looks like the company may soon share details about its launch in India now that it has received free marketing feedback from users.