RCB batting star Virat Kohli was penalised for his angry outburst at the on-field umpires during their away game against KKR at Eden Gardens in Kolkata on Sunday. Kohli was fined 50 percent of his match fee for showing dissent to the umpire's decision as he argued against a call that led to his dismissal in RCB's unsuccessful chase.
"Kohli committed a Level 1 offence under Article 2.8 of the IPL's Code of Conduct. He admitted to the offence and accepted the Match Referee's sanction. For Level 1 breaches of the Code of Conduct, the Match Referee's decision is final and binding," an IPL statement read.
The penalty for Virat Kohli comes shortly after RCB captain Faf du Plessis was fined Rs 12 lakh for an over-rate offence in the same match in Kolkata on Sunday.
Notably, both Virat Kohli and Faf du Plessis were unhappy when the former was adjudged out as early as the 3rd over of their 223-run chase against KKR. The bone of contention was Harshit Rana's full-toss which appeared to be waist-high. The slower one bowled by KKR's fast bowler caught Kohli by surprise as the RCB opener was caught and bowled after a leading edge ballooned into the night sky.
Virat Kohli was surprised that the on-field umpires did not call a no-ball as the ball hit his bat around the waist height. The on-field umpires sent the decision to the third umpire, who stuck to the on-field umpire's call and gave it out.
Kohli was fuming as he felt the decision wronged him. The star batter, who is the holder of the Orange Cap, started walking toward the dressing room, but made a U-turn to have another animated chat with the two on-field umpires before taking the long walk back.
Kohli was looking to put the pressure on the KKR bowling attack after hitting Mitchell Starc for a no-look six and a boundary in the 2nd over. Kohli was dismissed a 7-ball 18 before Faf du Plessis also followed his former captain to the dressing room as RCB were rocked early in their mammoth chase.
While replays and visuals from the third umpire's review of the decision indicated that the ball was legal, quite a few pundits argued that the Harshit Rana delivery should have been called a no-ball.
Kohli was standing well outside the popping crease and the ball appeared to have hit his bat at a height above his waist. However, the third umpire, according to ICC rules, took into account the dip in the delivery and the height at which the ball would have struck Kohli had he been at the popping crease.
According to rule 41.7 of ICC regulations 'Bowling of dangerous and unfair non-pitching deliveries': Any delivery, which passes or would have passed, without pitching, above waist height of the striker standing upright at the popping crease, is to be deemed to be unfair, whether or not it is likely to inflict physical injury on the striker. If the bowler bowls such a delivery the umpire shall immediately call and signal No ball.
Former cricketer and celebrated pundit Navjot Singh Sidhu slammed the laws, calling them draconian and said they need to be reviewed and dropped sooner, rather than later.
"I'll beat my chest and say that it was a not out. Rules have been changes, draconian laws have been changed. The laws need to be made in the benefit of the game. Look at the point of contact where he is standing, when a bowler delivers a beamer, they apologise. The point of contact with the bat is 1.5 ft above the line, this rule has to change. That decision changed the whole game," Sidhu said on Star Sports while commentating on the game.
Despite losing Kohli and Du Plessis early, RCB rode on Will Jacks and Rajat Patidar's fifties to stay ahead of the asking rate. However, Andre Russell and Sunil Narine picked up 2 wickets each in a span of 2 overs to derail the chase. A late-over blitz from Karn Sharma was not enough for RCB as they fell short of the target by 2 runs.
