Reports: Australian journalist lashes out at Virat Kohli over Melbourne airport incident

Recently, at the Melbourne Airport, Indian star batsman Virat Kohli got into a verbal fight with a female journalist. There have been conflicting reactions to the incident; some have defended Kohli’s actions as a father preserving his family’s privacy, while others have charged him with going too far.

When Kohli, his wife Anushka Sharma, and their kids arrived in Melbourne ahead of the fourth, or “Boxing Day,” Test of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT 2024–25), the controversy started. According to reports, journalist Nat Yoannidis was photographing Kohli’s family at the airport. Disappointed that his kids were being filmed, Kohli asked Yoannidis to remove the video. Despite his strong opposition to his children being included in public recordings, he permitted movies and photos of himself to be kept.

He’s always asked reporters to be considerate of his kids’ privacy. However, Nine Sports reporter Tony Jones charged that Kohli had intimidated and reprimanded Yoannidis.

Yoannidis was singled out by veteran hitter Virat Kohli, who referred to him as a “bully,” according to Jones.

Nat and a cameraman were out there, and a reporter from Channel 7 was out there with his cameraman. They were essentially doing what we do every day, which is to be at the airport to really get identities—whether they are politicians, athletes, or somebody else entirely. Since he was Virat Kohli, he was incensed that he was being filmed.

“Of course! He is upset that he is the centre of attention despite the fact that you are a batting powerhouse and a worldwide celebrity in cricket. What really made me laugh when I watched the video was when he turned to face the three men—the two cameramen and the Channel 7 reporter—and stated, “You guys are fine, it’s her.” Indeed? Virat is a rough, big man. After that, he stood over Nat Yoannidis, a girl who is roughly five feet one and five feet two, and he publicly chastised her. According to News18, Jones stated, “Virat, you’re nothing more than a bully.”

Ravindra Jadeja uses Hindi to address the media.

That same day, Ravindra Jadeja, another Indian cricket player, was criticised for speaking in Hindi during a news conference. The session terminated owing to time limits after he had been asked questions in his own language for nine minutes. Australian media outlets accused Jadeja of not responding to enquiries in English, with Channel 7 calling the situation “annoying” for journalists in attendance. Nevertheless, the media manager for India explained that a quick conversation was necessary due to the team’s schedule.

When the star all-rounder failed to respond to enquiries in English, the Australian media was perplexed and uneasy. The journalists who bothered to show up were clearly annoyed by the circumstances,” Channel 7 reported.