IND vs ENG | Kohli has disrespected umpires throughout; toothless ICC does nothing, asserts David Lloyd
Kohli having a word with the umpire during the second Test in Chennai
|BCCI Twitter
England cricket pundit David Lloyd has come hard at the Indian skipper Virat Kohli for disrespecting umpires throughout the ongoing tour and also termed the ICC toothless in regards to on-field altercations. He also added that umpires are being constantly undermined and gave examples of Kohli.
Virat Kohli divides opinions like none else. While his batting genius remains unquestionable, his on-field behavior often comes under public scrutiny. England cricket pundit David Lloyd, who was earlier not too impressed with the Indian pitches, has now come hard at the Indian skipper Virat Kohli. He accused Kohli of 'pressuring' and 'disrespecting' the on-field umpires throughout the ongoing tour in which both the sides have played four Tests, five T20Is, and one ODI thus far. He wasn't too pleased with Kohli suggesting that England had pressurized umpires in one of the T20I games.
“Kohli also suggested England were pressuring umpires to give the 'soft signal' as out when Dawid Malan took a low catch in the fourth T20. Firstly, the soft signal is there to leave as much authority as possible with the on-field umpires. And I don't know if England put pressure on Nitin Menon in Ahmedabad, but I do know one thing — Kohli has been pressuring, disrespecting, and remonstrating with umpires throughout this tour,” Lloyd wrote in his column for Daily Mail, reported HT.
Virat Kohli, a few days back, had suggested that the umpire's call should be taken out of the picture. It has been a common public opinion but for the first time, a leading cricketer of Kohli's stature had said so. The former England coach expressed his displeasure at Kohli's views on the DRS and asserted that umpires are being 'undermined.'
"Umpires are being increasingly undermined in international cricket and there are players who seem to think they, rather than the officials, are running the game. Take Virat Kohli. Before the first ODI the India captain said umpire's call should be removed from the decision review system and if the ball is shown to be hitting any part of the stumps it should be given out," he said.
Lloyd defended the umpire's call and remarked that the game would be over in a short duration if everything that clips the stumps is given out. He also asked Kohli to be more 'careful' as he has a big 'responsibility' on his shoulders of being an influential player.
“Kohli does not seem to have taken the consequences into account. If everything is out, including when the ball is just clipping the bails, then all Tests would be over in two days. An ODI would be over in four hours.
“Umpires have to be given their authority back. They must be handed yellow and red cards to stamp that lost authority because they look powerless. And Kohli, who has vast responsibility and influence, should be very careful in what he says and does,” Lloyd wrote in his column.
He also termed the ICC 'toothless' and suggested that there should be no confrontation on the cricket field among players.
“There have also been a number of altercations in India which, when copied, will permeate through every level. There was another on Tuesday near the end of the India innings. You should not confront an opposition player on the field. It's just not done. And the toothless International Cricket Council have done nothing,” he wrote.
