HOT UNDER THE COLLAR
India captain Virat Kohli is coming under fire for his frequent tantrums and bad behaviour
RANTS at the umpires, unsportsmanlike celebrations when the opposing team concedes a wicket and toddler-like tantrums on the pitch – it’s just not cricket! Unless, of course, you’re Virat Kohli. The impetuous India skipper raised the eyebrows of fans and teammates alike with his antics during the ProteasIndia Test series in South Africa, which India lost 2-1.
In one of the latest incidents, the talented batsman threw a tantrum worthy of an injured soccer player over – wait for it – a wet ball.
After a rain delay on the last day of the Centurion Test in the three-match series, Kohli (29) threw his toys after play resumed while the ball was still damp. And he made sure everyone knew it too, flinging the ball into the ground aggressively and arguing with umpire Michael Gough.
His display didn’t go unpunished: he was fined 25% of his match fee and the International Cricket Council (ICC) issued him with a demerit point for “conduct that is contrary to the spirit of the game”.
This is Kohli’s first demerit since the introduction of the system. If he gets four or more in the next 24 months, they’ll convert into suspension points and he could face match bans.
And that’s not all – it seems the incident also earned him a talking-to from India coach Ravi Shastri. They were seen engaging in an “animated” conversation as they headed to the umpires’ room after the showdown, ESPN reported.
It’s not the first time the Delhi-born star has displayed “unsporting” behaviour. In the New Year Test at Newlands in Cape Town, he came under fire for his over-the-top celebrations when Proteas captain Faf du Plessis went out in the first innings, roaring and leaping around as Faf sloped off.
His joy was clearly heightened by the fact that, just one delivery earlier, India had opted for a review on a leg-before-wicket (LBW) appeal on Faf, but the umpire’s decision held.
“Virat is very competitive,” SA fast bowler Morné Morkel told Sport24 after the Centurion outburst. “I think it’s just his nature and it gets his team going, and him going. We’re well aware of that but we don’t take any notice of it.”
Former SA captain Kepler Wessels thinks Kohli should exercise selfrestraint. “Every captain is entitled to question decisions and show emotion. But one just needs to be careful of how you do it and when you do it. Kohli went a little too far.”
BUT can he restrain himself? Kohli is no newcomer to the game and has been slapped down by the ICC before. In 2014 he was given a 30% match-fee fine after a clash with Australian all-rounder Steve Smith over a rejected LBW appeal against his teammate Rohit Sharma. And he was hit with another 30% fine after an on-field tantrum in a one-day international (ODI) against Pakistan in 2016.