Kumble, Nasser Hussian bat for Virat Kohli
Virat Kohli
After a leading British daily alleged that Indian skipper Virat Kohli was involved in ball tampering during the first India versus England Test in Rajkot, ex-England skipper Nasser Hussain and India coach Anil Kumble have come out in Kohli’s support.
While Hussain, who is on the commentary duties in India, lashed at ICC for the way they handled the Faf du Plessis ball-tampering issue in Australia, Mohali, Nov 24 (PTI) India coach Anil Kumble has also categorically dismissed the allegations, saying he does not believe in 'giving wind to such stories'.
'It's ludicrous, really. Much ado about nothing. The whole ball-shining thing with something in your mouth has been going on for ages,' Hussain told India Today in Mumbai.
'I don't know how you police it. How you say what is allowed and is not. What kind of sweets or drinks (can players consume) during the breaks?' Hussain added.
While Kohli did not face any charges, ICC fined South Africa’s stand-in Test skipper after the footage of him allegedly changing the condition of the ball during the Hobart Test emerged.
'I defend Virat and Faf vehemently. This is really poor stuff and we need to start concentrating on the important things,' said Hussain.
'There are so many other important things we need to worry about and not a picture of Virat from two games ago maybe with a sweet in his mouth or Faf Du Plessis with mint in his mouth,' added the ex-England captain.
While du Plessis made it clear that he was made a scapegoat, Australian skipper Steve Smith also defended his Proteas counterpart saying even the Aussies the same technique as that of du Plessis to shine the ball. Du Plessis and Cricket South Africa have demanded that the laws about ball tampering and the use of artificial substances to shine the ball should be clearly defined.
Hussain defended the stand saying, 'What is artificially altering the state of the ball? I know England do it, all teams do it, chucking the ball against an abrasive outfield to try to get it to reverse swing.'
A British tabloid published footages of Kohli applying saliva to the ball during the first Test against England at Rajkot. However, there were no complains made by the visiting team or the match referee to the ICC within a window of five days, which is a must as per world cricket's governing body's clause.
The ICC has already said that it will not make any investigations as per rules.
'First of all, I don't want to react to any report that is there in the media. As far as I am concerned, neither the umpire nor the match referee ever came to us talking about it.
'We would certainly not like to give too much wind to the story,' Kumble told mediapersons in Mohali clarifying his and the team's stand in the matter.
The legendary spinner said that he was not at all perturbed by what the British media has reported.
'There is nothing to worry about. People can allege and write whatever they want in the media. As far as we are concerned, none of our players were a part of such activity.'
But in a veiled dig, Kumble also drew comparisons with the Faf du Plessis incident in Hobart which has led to the South African skipper being fined 100 per cent of his match fees, terming it a "mountain being made out of molehill".
'South Africa has played exceptional cricket to beat Australia 2-0 and for Faf du Plessis, to be told that ball tampering, it is very silly. It's making a mountain out of a molehill.'
