Virat Kohli hit official with a bottle: Oz media

Mumbai: While the BCCI has withdrawn the complaint filed with ICC against Steve Smith and Peter Hanscomb, the Australian media is not ready to get over the DRS controversy.

Australian newspaper, the Daily Telegraph, on Thursday accused India captain Virat Kohli and coach Anil Kumble of indecent behaviour during the Bengaluru Test.

The paper alleges that Kohli ‘struck an Australian official with an orange Gatorade bottle’ while Kumble ‘stormed into the umpires room mid-innings’ to seek clarification over Kohli’s first innings dismissal.

“Kohli might be the aggressor in the brazen campaign India is running against Australia’s integrity — even striking an Australian official with an orange Gatorade bottle — but coach Kumble, one of the main instigators of the Monkeygate fiasco, would appear to have reclaimed his role as the puppeteer behind the scenes,” the report said.

The report even accused Kohli of making throat-slitting gesture towards Australia batsman Peter Handscomb and killing the spirit of the game once again.

“It can be revealed he (Kohli) unleashed an astonishing outburst in the dressing rooms following his dismissal, smashing a Gatorade bottle off a table, where it then rebounded off a television and struck an Australian team official on the leg.

“Kohli was also seen swearing in the direction of the Australian box as he left the field and using a throat-slitting gesture to send-off Peter Handscomb late in the Test.

“The spirit of the game notion has been pronounced dead in the game many times before, but Kohli — a law unto himself — would appear to have killed it off once again with his behaviour some of the worst by an international captain since villainous Sri Lankan leader Arjuna Ranatunga,” it said.