NEW DELHI: An old video of young Australian cricketer Sam Konstas expressing his admiration for modern-day great Virat Kohli has gone viral, reigniting conversations after the two had an on-field altercation during the opening day of the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground (MCG) on Thursday.
The resurfaced clip shows Konstas in awe of Kohli, when a reporter asked him, "If you could get to your phone and find three people have sent you a message, any three people in the world, who would you want them to be."
Konstas smilingly replied: "Shane Watson will be one hopefully, my dad, and maybe Virat Kohli."
The incident occurred after the 10th over of Australia’s innings when the players were crossing paths on the pitch. The 19-year-old debutant downplayed the incident as an accidental bump.
Kohli and Konstas brushed shoulders while crossing, leading to both players turning around to exchange heated words. Australian teammate Usman Khawaja intervened to diffuse the situation, with on-field umpires also stepping in.
Speaking to reporters after the day’s play, Konstas dismissed the clash as unintentional.
"I was adjusting my gloves, and I think he accidentally bumped into me. It’s just part of cricket and can happen when tensions are high," said the teenager.
However, Kohli was later fined 20 percent of his match fee and awarded one demerit point for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct.
"Article 2.12 of the ICC Code of Conduct relates to: 'inappropriate physical contact with a Player, Player Support Personnel, Umpire, Match Referee or any other person (including a spectator during an International Match'," the ICC said in a statement.
"No formal hearing was needed as Kohli accepted the sanctions propsed by Match Referee Andy Pycroft. On-field umpires Joel Wilson and Michael Gough, third umpire Sharfuddoula Ibne Shahid and fourth umpire Shawn Craig levelled the charge," the statement further read.
