India might me riding on a high of a massive 317-run win over England in the second Test in Chennai but some critics believe skipper Virat Kohli should be banned for at least three Tests! Kohli was seen arguing with the umpire during the second Test over a DRS call.
Joe Root was rapped in front in the penultimate over of Day Three by Axar Patel and India initially appealed for caught behind. Wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant was confident but on-field umpire Nitin Menon was unmoved. After a long discussion, India went for the review.
The replays showed the ball hitting Root’s pad but no edge was detected. However, since the point of impact appeared to be on the line, the third umpire also checked for LBW. Slow-motion replays suggested that the ball had hit Root on line as a part of the off-stump was even visible when the ball made contact with the pad.
No action was taken against Kohli for his remonstration against the on-field umpire by match-referee and former India paceman Javagal Srinath. Former England cricketer and coach David Lloyd, should ‘certainly’ not be playing in the third Test against England, starting in Motera on February 24.
“No word of any disciplinary action against Virat Kohli then? I chuckle and I despair. Cricket is so archaic. The captain of a national team is allowed to criticise, berate, intimidate and ridicule an official on the pitch,” Lloyd wrote in his column on Daily Mail.
“And he was allowed to carry on playing on in the second Test! In any other sport, he would have been sent off the field. Kohli certainly shouldn’t be playing in Ahmedabad next week.
“All it would take to show the public the severity of any offence is the introduction of yellow and red cards. This was a straight red — which would mean he misses the next three Tests. The lack of any action from match referee Javagal Srinath sitting there in his nice air-conditioned room beggars belief. Three and a half days and he has said nothing,” Lloyd added.
Lloyd also felt that the Chepauk pitch made the second Test a ‘non-event’. “This Test, to me, was a non-event. And to be brutally honest I’ve had no real interest in it since the first morning when the pitch exploded. I knew all I needed to know then. The result was inevitable, it was just a matter of time,” Lloyd wrote.
