Virat Kohli, 36, was seen telling Harshit Rana and Prasidh Krishna to bowl outside off-stump as he was leaving them in a number of films that went viral on social media in the run-up to the Boxing Day Test at Melbourne Cricket Ground. Although Kohli appeared disciplined in the first innings of the Test by leaving the balls properly, a run-out may have caused him to lose focus and receive a nick of the same delivery.
Once more, Kohli was dismissed to the outside off-side trap in the second innings. As they repeatedly threw the ball in the same area, Australia had no other strategy against the former India captain, but the cricketer didn’t fall victim at first. Mitchell Starc finally got the last laugh just before lunchtime when Kohli gave Usman Khawaja, who was positioned in the first slip, a nick one because he couldn’t resist the impulse to play a drive.
The visitors were already under pressure after losing two early wickets, so it was assumed that the seasoned professional would maintain composure in the penultimate over before lunch. But after a moment of distraction, Kohli left for five runs, ending his stay. After being dismissed, Mitchell Starc, who had been outstanding in the first session, was overjoyed as Australia moved one step closer to winning the Melbourne Test.
Check out all Virat Kohli dismissals in ongoing BGT:
Edged and caught behind the wicket, all of Virat Kohli’s dismissals this series have had a common theme #AUSvIND pic.twitter.com/5mz5SGcAbh
— 7Cricket (@7Cricket) December 30, 2024
In Perth, the series began with a brilliant century from the famous Indian batsman, which gave the visitors a commanding 295-run victory. With just 167 runs at an average of 27.83 in four games since then, Kohli has fallen short of expectations. There have been many discussions over the future of the senior cricket players in Test cricket, and head selector Ajit Agarkar had earlier stated that the team management would look past Kohli if he doesn’t improve.
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