‘You can’t do that’ – Storm erupts over Virat Kohli’s ugly act that proves Sam Konstas ‘rattled him’
Yesterday at 08:58 AM
England cricket great Michael Vaughan believes Virat Kohli’s ugly act proved he was well and truly ‘rattled’ by an Australian teenager.
During the opening day of the Boxing Day Test between Australia and India, 19-year-old debutant Sam Konstas lit up the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) with an impressive array of shots.
Replacing Nathan McSweeney at the top of the host nation’s batting order, Konstas became the youngest opener to debut for Australia.
Despite playing his first game in the cauldron that is the MCG, Konstas never appeared overawed by the occasion.
Such was the teenager’s swagger, he even ramped a delivery from Jasprit Bumrah, arguably the best bowler in the world, for six.
It was a case of third time lucky for Konstas, who had twice attempted to pull off the same shot against Bumrah but failed.
What made Konstas’ six against Bumrah all the more impressive was the fact the Indian star had not been hit for six in his last 25 Tests over four years.
Or, if you want to spell it out in exact deliveries, 4,483 balls.
But Konstas hit Bumrah over the rope not once, but twice in a blistering knock that lasted 75 minutes.
With each and every shot Konstas played, it sparked frustration among the Indian side.
None more so than within superstar Kohli and it all came to a head at the end of the tenth over.
As Konstas began to walk to the middle of the wicket for a chat with his opening partner Usman Khawaja, Kohli made a beeline for the teenager and was not going to move out of the way.
Kohli subsequently barged his shoulder into Konstas, sparking a confused reaction from the Australian debutant.
Khawaja, who has a long-standing relationship with Kohli, was able to diffuse the situation.
However, it did not stop big figures in the cricket world tearing into Kohli’s petulance as former England skipper Vaughan was left baffled by the act.
“He’s completely acted wrong,” Vaughan said on Fox Sports.
“I don’t know why a senior pro who’s played for so long – he’s a King – why he’s been rattled by a 19-year-old. Sam Konstas did absolutely nothing wrong there. Virat veered towards him.
“You can’t do that, you’re just not allowed to do that.”
Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting echoed a similar sentiment.
“Virat walked one whole pitch over to his right and instigated that confrontation,” Ponting told Channel Seven.
“No doubt in my mind whatsoever. I have no doubt that the umpires and the referee will have a good look at that.
“Fielders should be nowhere near the batsman at that stage. Every fieldsman on the ground knows where the batsmen will congregate and get together.
“It looked to me that Konstas looked up really late, wouldn’t even know anyone is in front of him.
“That man on-screen there (Kohli) might have a few questions to answer.”
Konstas’ electrifying innings ultimately came to an end when he was trapped LBW for 60 off 65 deliveries.
His half-century, which he racked up from just 52 balls, was also the third-fastest in Australian Test history, with only Adam Gilchrist and Ashton Agar ahead of him.
As for Kohli, he was fined 20 per cent of his match fee and accepted one demerit point for his fiery clash with Konstas.
It was certainly a fortunate escape for the Indian great given the ICC’s Code of Conduct states: "Any form of inappropriate physical contact is prohibited in cricket. Without limitation, players will breach this regulation if they deliberately, recklessly and/or negligently walk or run into or shoulder another player or umpire".
