Kohli Penalized 20% Match Fee After On-Field Clash With Konstas

On Thursday Viral Kohli was fined 20% of his match fee and handed one demerit point. This happened following an on-field incident involving Australian debutant Sam Konstas during the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG), Cricbuzz reported.

The Boxing Day Test took an entertaining turn when debutant Sam Konstas found himself embroiled in a fiery exchange with Virat Kohli. During the second session, the two players walked into each other, sparking a heated verbal argument. Australian opener Usman Khawaja and umpire Michael Gough quickly stepped in to calm the tension.

Code of Conduct 

As per the ICC’s Code of Conduct (CoC), Article 2.12 prohibits “any form of inappropriate physical contact in cricket.”

The clause states: “Players will breach this regulation if they deliberately, recklessly and/or negligently walk or run into or shoulder another player or umpire.”

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Factors such as the intent, force of contact and any resulting injury are considered when determining the seriousness of a breach. The shoulder bump, witnessed by a 90,000-strong MCG crowd, led to a heated exchange between the players. Kohli’s act drew sharp criticism from cricketing circles, including former players Ricky Ponting and Ravi Shastri.

Speaking on Channel Seven, Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting, firmly stated, “Virat walked one whole pitch over to his right and instigated that confrontation. No doubt in my mind whatsoever.”

Former India coach Ravi Shastri also weighed in, calling the act unnecessary. “There is a line, and you don’t want to overstep that line,” Shastri said. Reflecting on the moment, Konstas admitted: “The emotions got to both of us. I didn’t quite realise what happened as I was fixing my gloves, then there was a little shoulder charge—but it happens in cricket.” 

Former umpire Simon Taufel also weighed in, suggesting that Kohli’s as “inappropriate physical contact” under the ICC’s Code of Conduct. He explained, “Virat Kohli actually changed his line to get into the personal space of Sam Konstas. This is a clause within the ICC Code of Conduct, and the umpires and the referee will be looking at it seriously after play today.”

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