Virat Kohli’s classy gesture saves Steve Smith from abuse
As a wild horde of India fans greeted Steve Smith with chants of “cheat, cheat, cheat” on The Oval boundary, the former Australia skipper found a powerful ally.
Cricket
Don't miss out on the headlines from Cricket. Followed categories will be added to My News.
Virat Kohli has sledged Indian fans over their “unacceptable” treatment of Steve Smith with the rival captain pleading for World Cup crowds to treat the maligned batsman with respect.
Smith was loudly booed as he jogged towards the boundary to field at third man and a chant of “cheater, cheater, cheater” echoed around The Oval in London yesterday.
Kohli, who was on his way to a crisp 82 (77) at the time, waved to the Indian faithful seated in the Vauxhall Stand to grab their attention after the next ball.
Kohli then gestured to the fans to instead applaud Smith, before turning around and shaking his head in disappointment.
MATCH REPORT: AUSSIES BLOWN AWAY BY INDIAN MASTERCLASS
Kohli then embraced Smith in a brilliant display of sportsmanship between two of the sport’s fiercest rivals.
True Captain! #PlayBold #TeamIndia https://t.co/VMxUAHAplY
— Royal Challengers (@RCBTweets) June 9, 2019
The Indian faithful responded to Kohli’s gesture by chanting, “Kohli, Kohli, Kohli” but they failed to heed his advice as the boos continued when Smith batted in Australia’s innings.
“He didn’t do anything to be booed in my opinion,” Kohli said.
“Because there’s so many Indian fans here, I just didn’t want them to set a bad example. He’s just playing cricket.
“He was just standing there, and I felt bad because if I was in a position where something had happened with me and I had apologised, I accepted it and I came back and still I would get booed, I wouldn’t like it, either.
“So I just felt for him, and I told him, I’m sorry on behalf of the crowd because I’ve seen that happen in a few earlier games, as well, and in my opinion that’s not acceptable.”
Kohli noted that he and Smith have had “issues” in the past and on-field arguments but that he still wanted the former Australian captain to be forgiven by the public over his involvement in the ball-tampering saga.
“Look, I think what’s happened has happened a long back,” Kohli said.
“The guy is back, he’s trying to play well for his side. Even in the IPL I saw him, it’s not good to see someone down like that, to be honest.
“You don’t want to see a guy feeling that heat every time he goes out to play. What’s happened has happened.
Originally published as Virat Kohli’s classy gesture saves Steve Smith from abuse
Analysis: Battle royale looms at the MCG
A potential Cameron Green sized hole has left Aussie selectors with a huge headache. And after having their first look at how to solve it, it’s now even more unclear, as a 19-year-old and a veteran both made monster hundreds.
Test hopeful and teen star set Shield alight
The national selection chief was in Sydney to watch a rising star carve out a maiden century as Victorian Test hopeful also opened the Sheffield Shield season in style.