The former Indian captain in the longest format, Virat Kohli, was involved in a fight with the Australian media at the Melbourne Airport ahead of their fourth Test match at the Melbourne Cricket Ground in the Border Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25. The heated argument kept on growing as the Delhi-born was engaged in a heated exchange with a Television journalist at the airport.
However, the reports have disclosed the entire incident now. It’s believed that it wasn’t the fault of Virat Kohli, and instead, the Australian media tried to create controversy without any reason by targeting the legend of the game.
Kohli was targeted, reportedly, by the Channel 7 reporter, unnecessarily. The veteran right-handed batter arrived at the airport with his wife, Anushka Sharma, and the two kids. The cameraman of Channel 7 was looking to take their pictures despite the refusal from the Indian leader.
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Virat Kohli has made it very clear to everyone not to take pictures of their kids, and he again asked the cameraman not to shoot. However, the journalist in the Australian media leaked the privacy and the inside details of the issue and went ahead with a further developed argument. The cameraman later apologized and understood the concern of the individual as a parent.
Report claims of Virat Kohli being obstructed in his privacy while being with family in Melbourne
When the 36-year-old arrived with his family at the Melbourne airport, the local network Channel 7 of Australia tried their best to capture the picture of the batter. This time, he was sharp enough to direct his words at the TV journalists about how they couldn’t film themselves without obtaining permission.
Both Virat Kohli and the journalist were seen to be having a conversation as the pictures and the video went viral. It hasn’t been a decent time for the former Indian captain with the bat in the last two games, especially.
He came into the series on the back of his poor time at home against New Zealand with just 93 runs in six innings at an average of 15.50 with the help of one half-century at the M. Chinnaswamy Stadium in Bengaluru. In the first innings of the opening Test at the Optus Stadium in Perth, he was dismissed by a short ball of Josh Hazlewood as he got an edge into the hands of the wicket-keeper.
When he walked out in the middle during the second innings, the situation of the game was different as he celebrated his 30th red-ball century and remained unbeaten on 100.
The expectation grew in the second day-night Test at the Adelaide Oval. But runs dried up off his bat again. In the first innings of the pink-ball encounter, Virat Kohli wasn’t convinced where to play the delivery or not and ended up getting an outside edge into the hands of the slip fielder. In the second innings of the game, under the full effects of the floodlight, he leaned forward to get another outside edge into the hands of the wicket-keeper, Alex Carey, against Scott Boland.
Virat Kohli was unnecessarily targeted by channel 7 reporter. A close friend of Kohli told me the entire story. Two fans from Singapore witnessed the whole incident. They corroborated Kohli’s team mate description. This was disgraceful from Aus media to go after Indian legend’s… pic.twitter.com/FCW6DPsqoo
— Vimal कुमार (@Vimalwa) December 19, 2024
In the first innings of the third Gabba Test, the 36-year-old was again trapped in the same plan by Josh Hazlewood as he went for a booming drive. For the first time in his red-ball career, the Test average down under for the veteran has dropped below 50, and Virat Kohli will hope to get the best result for the last two Tests in Melbourne and Sydney.