In a dramatic IPL 2025 final between Royal Challengers Bengaluru (RCB) and Punjab Kings (PBKS), legendary cricketer Sunil Gavaskar criticised the on-field umpires for ignoring a dangerous running act by Virat Kohli. 

The incident occurred during the 12th over of the RCB innings when Kohli ran straight down the pitch while completing a quick double off Yuzvendra Chahal’s bowling. Gavaskar, who was commentating live, questioned why Kohli wasn’t warned, highlighting that such running could damage the pitch for the second innings.

RCB were put into bat by PBKS at the Narendra Modi Stadium in Ahmedabad. With boundaries hard to come by, Kohli was looking to keep the scoreboard ticking through quick singles and twos. In the 12th over, after nudging the ball wide of long-on, Kohli called for a second run. His partner, Liam Livingstone, comfortably made his ground with a dive at the non-striker’s end.

However, Gavaskar was quick to point out that Kohli had run straight down the pitch, which is typically frowned upon due to the potential damage it can cause to the playing surface. “Kohli is a swift runner between the wickets. As soon as he hit the ball, he knew it was two,” Gavaskar said. “No umpire will ever tell him. There he is, running straight down the pitch again. Punjab Kings are batting second,” he added.

While the umpires did not intervene, Gavaskar’s remarks have sparked conversation on whether top players are sometimes allowed to get away with such actions.

Apart from the pitch controversy, Kohli’s approach with the bat also raised eyebrows. Known for his high strike rate this season, hovering around 150, he chose a more conservative route in the final. Instead of going for big shots, he focused on rotating the strike and giving more deliveries to power-hitters like Phil Salt and Rajat Patidar.

Former Australia opener Matthew Hayden, who was part of the English broadcast team, questioned the approach. “200 is just a par score here,” he noted, suggesting Kohli should’ve been more aggressive.

Kohli eventually fell in the 15th over to Azmatullah Omarzai after scoring 43 off 35 balls. During the first strategic time-out, RCB coaches Andy Flower and Dinesh Karthik were seen in an intense discussion with Kohli, likely urging him to increase the scoring rate.

PBKS, led by Shreyas Iyer, won the toss and opted to bowl first. Both teams remained unchanged for the final. (NDTV)

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A “star culture” within the Indian team coupled with selectors who were unwilling to move on senior players caused India to surrender the Border Gavaskar Trophy, according to former greats and the Indian media.

In the aftermath of Australia’s six-wicket win at the SCG to clinch a 3-1 series victory on Sunday, Indian legend Sunil Gavaskar expressed his strong belief, in a report by the Hindustan Times, that the BCCI must reassess the way it manages the Indian players.

Gavaskar, who scored more than 10,000 Test runs, is adamant that not all members of the Indian squad for the tour of Australia are fully committed to the team, and that the BCCI are not being strong enough on them.

“I think the next 8–10 days are crucial for Indian cricket to take a good, honest look at itself. Most importantly, the star culture has to end. Total commitment to Indian cricket is non-negotiable. Players must make themselves available every single time unless there’s a genuine medical emergency. If someone isn’t fully committed, they shouldn’t be considered for selection,“ Gavaskar said.

Gavaskar’s comments point the finger squarely at veteran batters Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli, whose international futures remain clouded.

Sharma, who was alleged rested for the Sydney Test but in reality was dropped after scoring 31 runs at an average of 6.20, missed the first Test of the series in Perth due to the birth of his second child.

Kohli missed the entirety of India’s five-Test home series against England last year for the same reason, and four summers ago he went home from Australia after the first Test of the series for the birth of his first child.

But the man who shares naming honours of the trophy Australia and India vie for with Allan Border, argues that national duty should trump family commitments.

“We don’t need players who are partly here and partly elsewhere. It’s time to stop pampering anyone,” Gavaskar added.

“The recent results have been disappointing — we should have been in the World Test Championship final but didn’t make it.

“The cricket board needs to stop acting like admirers and put their foot down. They must tell the players that Indian cricket comes first. It’s either a full commitment to Indian cricket or other priorities — you can’t have it both ways. If Indian cricket is your priority, only then should you be selected.”

Former Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan shares Gavaskar’s concerns about the team culture.

Pathan, who opened the batting and the bowling in a Test against Australia at the Adelaide Oval in 2008, also questioned Kohli’s place in the side, and highlighted the 36-year-old’s reluctance to feature in Indian domestic cricket, in a report in The Deccan Herald.

“We need to end superstar culture, we need team culture. You need to improve yourself and improve the Indian team. There were matches before this series, too, and they had an opportunity to play domestic cricket, but they didn’t. We need to change that culture,” Pathan said.

“When was the last time Virat Kohli played domestic cricket? It has been more than a decade.

“For the Indian team in 2024, in the first innings where you basically set up the match, Virat Kohli’s average is 15. And if you consider his average over the last five years, it’s not even 30.

“Does the Indian team deserve its senior player? Instead, give a youngster a chance. Tell him to get ready. He will also give an average of 25–30. This is about the team, not the individuals.

“When we talk about Virat Kohli, he has done a lot for India. He has delivered many performances. But you are getting out from the same mistake again and again.

“You are not creating a gap between two mistakes. You are not trying to fix the technical mistake.”

Despite scoring an unbeaten century in the second innings in Perth, Kohli only mustered 190 runs for the series.

The right-hander was caught behind the wicket in all eight of his dismissals, four of which came off the bowling of Scott Boland, as he repeatedly poked at balls around a fifth or sixth stump line.

With Sharma dropped and player-of-the-series Jasprit Bumrah off the field injured during Australia’s run chase, Kohli tried his best to marshal the troops and The Indian Express’ Sriram Veera wrote that it arguably was the former captain’s best moment of the series.

“Unfortunately, the key men of Indian team’s best performances seem to have come in front of the microphone, it has to be said. Or in a team huddle,” Veera wrote.

“Virat Kohli, the acting captain over the weekend in the absence of the injured Bumrah, tried his best to inspire his bowling and fielding unit, but failed at his job as a batsman, through the series, barring that ton in second-innings at Perth. Anything outside off, be it from back of length or full and wide, proved a kryptonite.

“We don’t know what he has told the players inside the dressing room, but one of the best lines from the head coach Gautam Gambhir came in the post-series press conference. “Ultimately, it’s neither my team nor your team, it’s the nation’s team. I believe that, as I said, there are very honest players in our dressing room who know how hungry they are and whether the team can move forward with their contribution. But yes, as far as my question is concerned, my biggest responsibility is that I have to be fair to everyone in the team. Not only one or two individuals.”

“If he can walk that talk, and there is nothing to doubt that he won’t, as yet, he has a couple of tough decisions to make involving Virat Kohli and Rohit Sharma.”

Those decisions may not come for some time as India’s next red-ball assignment does not arrive until June 20, when their five-Test series in England begins at Headingley.

Or they may not come from Gambhir at all as he hinted in his post-series press conference that they will be left to make retirements calls themselves, while he also backed them to turn their form around if they do continue at Test level, in a report by The New Indian Express.

“They are tough people with hunger; they’ll decide what is best for Indian cricket,” Gambhir said.

“They still have the hunger, they still have the passion, they’re tough people, and hopefully, they can continue to take Indian cricket forward.

“Ultimately, whatever they plan, they will plan in the best interest of Indian cricket. Every individual knows where their game and hunger is. That is the most important thing for any sport and any profession.”

With such a lengthy gap before India’s next Test match, Gambhir did also express his desire to see more of his players taking part in domestic cricket to sharpen their game at the level below when the Ranji Trophy begins later this month.

“I would always like everyone to play domestic cricket. That is how much importance domestic cricket needs to be given. Not only one game, but if they are available and have the commitment to play red-ball cricket, everyone should play domestic cricket,” he said.

“It’s as simple as it can get. If you don’t give importance to domestic cricket, you will never get the desired players that you want in Test cricket.” (Fox Sports)

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Cricket in India is like a religion and cricketers from our nation are treated no less than celebrities. Therefore, it should come as no surprise that former Indian captain Virat Kohli is the highest-earning Indian on Instagram.

According to a recent report, Kohli rakes in a staggering sum of INR 11.45 crore from every post of his on the photo-sharing app. Even then, Kohli stood 14 on the list of the highest-earning celebrities on Instagram with star footballer Cristiano Ronaldo leading the list.

The Portuguese striker has the most followers on the Meta-owned app and therefore it comes as little surprise that he pipped fellow superstar Lionel Messi to first place.

According to a report from Hopper HQ, Ronaldo and Messi are followed by Hollywood superstar Selena Gomez. Kohli is the only Indian in the top 20 list for 2023.

According to the same report, Ronaldo commands a massive fee of USD 3.23 million for every sponsored post, which roughly translates to INR 26.75 crore. His eternal rival Messi, who came in second place earns USD 2.56 million per Instagram post which translates to INR 21.49 crore.

Kohli meanwhile commands a fee of USD 1.38 million per post, and the star cricketer has a huge army of 256 million followers on the platform.

The 34-year-old is currently on a break having been rested by the BCCI ahead of the Asia Cup 2023 which is set to start from August 2. India are set to kick-start their campaign with a meeting against arch-rivals Pakistan on September 2.

The last time India squared off against Pakistan it was in the T20 World Cup 2022, wherein Kohli’s knock had guided India to a comeback win. The star batter has been in scintillating form in 2023, he finished among the top run scorers in IPL 2023 and he will be looking to carry forward that momentum to the Asia Cup, as well as the ODI World Cup 2023 which will be held on Indian shores from October 5 to November 19. (News18)

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Royal Challengers Bangalore (RCB) captain Virat Kohli and Lucknow Super Giants’ (LSG) bowler Naveen-ul-Haq are engaged in a social media battle following their clash during the Indian Premier League (IPL) match in Lucknow on Monday (01).

After RCB’s 18-run win, Virat Kohli and Lucknow Super Giants’ mentor Gautam Gambhir engaged in an ugly spat before the teammates came and interfered.

The altercation between Kohli and Gambir has cost them 100 per cent of their match fees, as both have been fined for breaching the IPL Code of Conduct after the match in Lucknow yesterday.

Kohli and Gambhir have admitted to the Level 2 offence under Article 2.21 of the IPL Code of Conduct.

Meanwhile, LSG bowler Naveen-ul-Haq, who was involved in a verbal duel with Kohli during the 17th over of Lucknow’s run-chase, has also been fined 50 per cent of his match fees for a Level 1 offence.

Despite being fined, both Virat Kohli and Naveen-ul-Haq have taken the battle to social media, with both sharing posts on Instagram. 

“Everything we hear is an opinion, not a fact. Everything we see is a perspective, not the truth,” Kohli first shared on Instagram.

Naveen-ul-Haq, thereafter, posted; “You get what you deserve. That’s how it should be and that’s how it goes.” (NewsWire)

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