Kohli booed by Australian fans; Head, Ponting critical of crowd behaviour
Adelaide, Dec 8 : Virat Kohli was booed by a small section of the Adelaide Oval crowd when he stepped out to bat in the second innings against Australia, an act that has been criticised by rival batsman Travis Head and former skipper Ricky Ponting.
Kohli came out to bat after the fall of opener K L Rahul and was jeered by a small group of Australian fans. He received similar boos when he had headed to bat on the opening day.
Travis Head, however, wasn't impressed by the behaviour of the crowd.
"He's a pretty good player and probably doesn't deserve to be booed but that's how it is. It's probably not needed but that's the crowd," he said.
When Jasprit Bumrah was asked about the booing, he said that the Indian team likes to ignore such situations.
"I don't think all these things are important to us because for us, what happens in that circle is important. Everything else, we can't control and it is not in our hands. If they want to, they can do whatever they want. As long as we are doing well, we are happy," he said.
Former Australia captain Ricky Ponting, who was also booed by sections of English crowd on a few occasions during the 2009 Ashes tour, also expressed his displeasure at seeing the action by the fans.
"I don't like seeing it at all," Ponting told cricket.com.au after Kohli scored 34 runs in a 104-ball innings before being removed by spinner Nathan Lyon just before the draw of stumps.
"It didn't worry me as a player when it happened in England a couple times. You've almost got to accept it as acknowledgement for what you've done in the game. But I'd rather not see that happen at all.
"It'll be water off a duck's back (for Kohli), I'm sure. He's probably had worse things happen to him on a cricket field, I would have thought, than getting booed by a couple of spectators as he walks on."
In the past, there have been many instances of crowd booing Kohli. In fact, the India skipper was booed by Edgbaston crowd during the first Test against England this year.
During his first tour to Australia in 2011/12, Kohli faced the wrath of the crowd at the Sydney cricket ground. He was fined 50 per cent match fee after he showed his middle finger to the crowd.
He was also booed by an all-Indian crowd at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai during an IPL match between Royal Challengers Bangalore and the Mumbai Indians.
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Conspiracy afoot to 'tarnish' image of Dharmasthala: Deputy CM DK Shivakumar
Bengaluru, Aug 14 (PTI): Karnataka Deputy Chief Minister D K Shivakumar on Thursday said there was a “conspiracy” to tarnish the image of Dharmasthala.
His comments come amid an ongoing investigation by a Special Investigation Team (SIT) into serious allegations of mass burials in the revered temple town in Dakshina Kannada district.
“A conspiracy is being hatched to destroy hundreds of years of legacy. It is not correct to tarnish someone just like that. It has all happened due to one complainant,” he said.
Noting that some Congress MLAs have called for action against those involved in the slander campaign at the legislature party meeting, he said, “ I have told them that action must be taken against those who are indulging in a slander campaign. The CM has also said that action must be taken against such people.”
“I have information on this case. Religious feelings should not be hurt in any manner. Culprits must be punished,” he told reporters, according to a release from his office.
Responding to a question, Shivakumar said the Congress party will not allow the image of any religious place to be tarnished.
“We see everyone equally when it comes to religion,” he added.
The SIT, formed by the state government, is probing claims of mass murder, rape, and mass burials in Dharmasthala over the past two decades.
The complainant, a former sanitation worker whose identity has not been revealed, alleged that between 1995 and 2014 he was forced to handle bodies—including women and minors—and that some showed signs of sexual assault. He has given a statement before a magistrate.
As part of the probe, the SIT has been conducting exhumations at multiple locations identified by the complainant-witness in the forested areas along the banks of the Netravathi River in Dharmasthala, where some skeletal remains have been found at two sites so far.
