File image of Virat Kohli.© AFP
Virat Kohli‘s tour of Australia did not go as per plan. While it started off brilliantly with a superb century at Perth, it ended on a sour note, full of controversy and doubts surrounding his form. In the fourth Test in Melbourne, Kohli got embroiled in a shoulder clash with Australia’s teenage debutant Sam Konstas, leading him to be fined 20 per cent of his match fees. Kohli also teased the Sydney crowd during the fifth Test with a ‘sandpaper’ reference. Speaking on these issues, former Australia cricketer Simon Katich – once the head coach of Kohli at Indian Premier League franchise (IPL) Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) – stated that Kohli had tarnished his reputation.
“There’s no doubt he (Kohli) has been a modern great of the game in all formats. But I think you have to question what sort of headspace he’s been in on this tour to be doing that, making physical contact in Melbourne and then even the other unsavoury incident in Sydney with the sandpaper reference there with the pockets,” Katich said on ESPN Australia’s Around The Wicket show.
“I mean that in itself – there was no need for that. It’s old news so in a way I think he’s tarnished his reputation somewhat on this tour, on and off the field,” Katich added.
Aaron Finch, who played with Kohli and under Katich at RCB in 2020, added to the sentiment.
“It was just a level of frustration. I said last week it seemed as though he wanted to find conflict and confrontation – that’s where he generally plays his best cricket. So he just went overboard on this tour. The bump (with Konstas), that was above and beyond anything I’ve seen on a field, and then the sandpaper, unnecessary. Overall, I think he was trying to find something to ignite a fire in himself, but just wasn’t up to it.,” Finch said.
Kohli scored just 190 runs in nine innings in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024/25, repeatedly getting out to deliveries outside the off-stump.
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