The BCCI has officially responded to the controversy surrounding Virat Kohli by saying it had asked him to “maintain the dignity of the Indian team at all times, and avoid any such behaviour in the future.” The incident on Tuesday involved Kohli abusing an Indian reporter, which later transpired to be a case of mistaken identity.
“The BCCI has been in touch with the Indian team management on this issue, and has advised that this kind of incident should not be repeated,” the board’s secretary Anurag Thakur said in a release. “The BCCI respects the role played by the media in covering and popularising the game of cricket, and acknowledges the support of the media, in its mission to administer and promote the game of cricket in India.
“The BCCI would like to request the concerned parties to move on, and focus on the Indian cricket team’s campaign in the ongoing World Cup.”
Thakur’s statement did not name Kohli, but the same statement, when forwarded by the team’s media manager RN Baba, had his name in the subject line.
A report published by Jasvinder Sidhu in the Hindustan Times on Wednesday described how Kohli “continuously pointed his finger” at him, and repeatedly made abuses in Hindi. Kohli then reportedly relayed an apology through another journalist, who was told by Kohli that it was a case of mistaken identity. The publication, however, decided not to dwell any longer on the subject.
“In the interest of India’s World Cup campaign, we do not wish to take this matter any further,” Sukhwant Basra, Hindustan Times’ sports editor, said. “Anurag Thakur has been very accommodating and it is a refreshing change from the cricket administrators of the recent past.”
The matter was raised at the pre-match presser but R Ashwin, who was the player at the presser, remained neutral, saying that the entire episode was “definitely not in my jurisdiction”.
“It’s very heartening to see the media turn up in huge numbers and try to support us. But I mean, this is my take on it,” Ashwin said. “I think the media has a responsible way of taking cricket back home in a responsible fashion, taking cricket to the public in the way it needs to be taken. There are times when I’m not happy with that, but that’s my opinion. But there are other times when you support the players and it’s very important to take the game forward.”
Former India batsman VVS Laxman believed Kohli’s conduct was unbecoming of a Test captain, and that he had to learn to keep his emotions in check while representing the team.
“It is not right on Virat’s part, irrespective of what has happened,” Laxman told NDTV. “Whether it is right or wrong from the journalist’s point of view, it is important to do that in closed doors, but not in the public domain or in public space. He has to remember that he is a role model and people will be watching him, will be following him, and will be wanting to emulate him.
“It is very important to keep his emotions under control. Especially now that he is captain of the Indian Test team, it is very important for him to take notice of what he is doing in the public space, especially during the World Cup.
“I also request the media fraternity to not blow this story out of proportion, because it is important that Virat and the Indian team concentrate on the job at hand, which is to win the World Cup.”
