Melbourne: 2024 edition of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy has had its dynamic shift due to the recent test match between India and Australia at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG). Virat Kohli has drawn the attention away from other issues with a brawl Krain left behind by the Australian debutant Sam Konstas during the first day of the match.
A little of the tension came to the surface on the 10th over of the Australian innings when Kohli, who was fielding near the boundary, bumped into Konstas. The dialogue amplified into a verbal argument, the attention filled up by the players and fans. After the fight, the Australian fans booed Kohli, who answered in his typical style. He invited them to cheer louder, signifying for them to make more noise.
Considering the chain of events, the International Cricket Council (ICC) fined Kohli, and he lost 20% of his match fee. Additionally, he got one demerit point for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct. Kohli held up his end of the bargain, trying to minimise criticism of him. After the day’s play, he said he felt that Konstas had not seen him coming before their collision.
Virat Kohli Vs Australian crowd.
– King Kohli says to chant loudly. 🔥pic.twitter.com/PgQqoFLXzJ
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) December 27, 2024
Winning the toss, Australia chose to bat first and managed to score a robust 474 runs before their innings ended. The main contributor was Steve Smith, who made a scintillating 140 runs, while Marnus Labuschagne (72), Sam Konstas (60), and Usman Khawaja (57) played significant innings. Jasprit Bumrah was the best bowler of the match from the Indian side, taking four wickets while Ravindra Jadeja picked up 3.
Konstas, after his innings, addressed the incident and called it an accidental bump, elaborating on what happened. Ex-Australian captain Ricky Ponting, however, said during commentary that Kohli’s actions would definitely be attractive prosecuting from the ICC due to their nature.
While the game stays in progress, Kohli’s lively reaction to the jeers of the crowd as well as his consequent penalty are just additional parts of the fierce rivalry. This fourth test match is well on its way to being a memorable battle in this epic.
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