Out or not out? Virat Kohli's controversial dismissal in Perth sparks a debate
Virat Kohli was given out under controversial circumstances which has since divided social media.
In Short
- Virat Kohli scored his 25th Test hundred off 214 deliveries on day three in Perth
- Kohli was given out by the third umpire even as there was inconclusive evidence of a catch taken in the slip cordon
- Kohli was unhappy with the decision as he walked off the ground shaking his head
Virat Kohli scored his 25th century on the third morning of the second Test on Sunday but fell on the stroke of lunch under controversial circumstances.
Kohli's record-breaking knock of 123 came to an end when he edged Pat Cummins to a forward-diving Peter Handscomb at second slip.
Whether Handscomb got his fingers under the ball will be a matter of debate for days to come but the onfield official's soft signal was out and the third umpire did not reverse the decision on review.
Kohli was unhappy with the decision as he walked off the ground shaking his head.
Here's how it happened -
Doesn't get much closer than that! Kohli has to go... #CloseMatters #AUSvIND | @GilletteAU pic.twitter.com/v6luCLWez1 cricket.com.au (@cricketcomau) December 16, 2018
Even as Kohli walked back to the pavilion amidst loud cheers and claps from the fans in attendance in Perth, social media was divided on the verdict of his dismissal.
"Kohli was out or not out? What do u say guys??," Harbhajan Singh pondered on Twitter.
Kohli was out or not out ? What do u say guys ?? Harbhajan Turbanator (@harbhajan_singh) December 16, 2018
Harsha Bhogle, commentator and expert, tweeted that even the huge advancements in technology, it is still not hundred percent correct all the the time.
"The bottom line is that technology in such matters is inconclusive and will always be inconclusive because we are seeing a 3 dimensional event in 2 dimensions. And so the verdict tend to go with the on-field umpire," he tweeted.
The bottom line is that technology in such matters is inconclusive and will always be inconclusive because we are seeing a 3 dimensional event in 2 dimensions. And so the verdict tend to go with the on-field umpire. Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) December 16, 2018
Former Australian fast bowler Mitchell Johnson though drew attention to earlier incidents where rather the Australian batsmen were at the receiving end.
Johnson tweeted,"One batsman walked the other didn’t, both out. Handscomb catch was soft out & went to third umpire given out, Rahul catch given out on field hazelwood walked no questions. Scoreboard says out for both so happy with both decisions."
One batsman walked the other didn’t, both out. Handscomb catch was soft out & went to third umpire given out, Rahul catch given out on field hazelwood walked no questions. Scoreboard says out for both so happy with both decisions. pic.twitter.com/DQr70kZ7uT Mitchell Johnson (@MitchJohnson398) December 16, 2018
Kohli had reached his 25th Test century in style with a flowing off-drive to the boundary then placed his helmet on the ground, pointed to his bat and made a yapping gesture with his gloved hand.
It was his sixth century in Australia, which matches the tally of the great Sachin Tendulkar, and ended a drought against Australia with just 83 runs in his past seven Test innings against them.
Kohli showed no lasting ill-effects from an earlier injury scare when he was struck on the forearm by a searing Mitchell Starc bouncer and required treatment.
The century saw him equal Sachin Tendulkar's record of 6 Test hundreds down under. Tendulkar and Kohli are actually the only two batsmen to slam six hundreds in Australia in the last 70 years.
Kohli is also second on the list of captains with most runs in a calendar year in away Test matches. Former South Africa skipper Graeme Smith leads the list with 1212 runs in 11 Tests in 2008. He actually managed to achieve the feat twice in his career in 2003 and 2008.
Kohli went past Australia's Bob Simpson, who scored 1018 runs in 9 Test matches in 1964 while West Indies legend Garry Sobers is next with 895 runs in 7 matches in 1966.
This is also Virat Kohli's seventh Test hundred against Australia. In Oceania, Kohli has now scored 7 hundreds while this is Indian captain's 14th hundred in away Tests.
This is also Virat Kohli's 18th Test century as the captain of India, which goes on to show exactly how much he has led his team from the front and has taken captaincy as a means to improve himself.
The 30-year-old also is the second fastest batsmen to scored 25 Test hundreds as he reached the milestone in 127 innings. Don Bradman took just a mere 68 innings to score 25 Test hundreds but Kohli has left Sachin Tendulkar behind who took 130 innings to score as many hundreds in Tests.
India were eventually all out for 283, giving the hosts a lead of 43 runs.