Virat Kohli's tussle with the Australia media continues as the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy intensifies. The series is locked in at 1-1 and the fourth Test is underway at the Melbourne Cricket Ground. The contest was heavily dominated by Australia on the opening day but the highlight of the day was an altercation between Kohli and 19-year-old debutant Sam Konstas.
Konstas started his Test career with a memorable effort as he went on a rampage against Jasprit Bumrah, India's best bowler in the series. Mohammed Siraj, Bumrah's bowling partner, too felt ineffective against the youngster, as the former was seen exchanging a few words with the batter on his follow-through. However, one incident, which caught most eyeballs was Kohli's fiery exchange with Konstas, which took place after the 10th over of Australia's first innings.
Kohli while exchanging sides in between overs shoulder dashed with Konstas, which former Australia skipper Ricky Ponting felt was instigated by the Indian. Former India player and coach Ravi Shastri and batting legend Sunil Gavaskar were also critical of Kohli's antics.
However, the Australian media went a step further and labelled India's talismanic batter as "Clown Kohli" the photo of which has taken social media by storm.
Taking a dig at the star Indian batter 'The West Australian' used the headline - 'Clown Kohli.' Kohli was also called a sook (crybaby or coward) over his act.
ICC on Kohli's actions
Match referee Andy Pycroft took a close look at the incident and deemed it as a Level One offence, charging Kohli with a fine of 20 percent from his match fees.
Ravi Shastri opines
Shastri, who was critical of Kohli's on-field action, expressed that this sort of backlash is expected from media, stating he was not "surprised" at all.
"You expect that in a home country. I wish our country would stand up for our players in situations like this in a bigger way. I am not surprised by this at all, simply because Australia hasn’t won here in 14–15 years. The last time they won a Test match at the MCG was in 2011. So, when they get an opportunity to go berserk, they will go berserk," Ravi Shastri told Star Sports.
"I’ve been to Australia many, many times. It’s like the whole country comes behind the team—not just the crowds, but the media as well. I am not surprised because I see that sense of desperation. If Australia had already been 3–0 or 2–0 up, the headlines might have been different. I know where that’s coming from. It’s built up over a period of time, and it had to come out somewhere. Someone had to be the target. Then they got the opportunity with that physical incident yesterday (Day 1).
"They said, ‘This is our chance; let’s get pens and paintbrushes out and start doing all sorts of things.’ You saw that thing on Virat Kohli’s nose. I mean, they forgot to paint the seam there—that would have been a ball," he added.
Kohli vs Australian media
This is not incident in this tour when Kohli has got into a controversy with media. Earlier he got into a heated confrontation with a cameraperson at the Melbourne airport, disputing over filming his kids without permission.
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