Virat Kohli turns to Indian fans at MCG, tells them to chant for ‘DSP’ Mohammed Siraj as India pacer rattles AUS batters

Crowd, acknowledging the signal from Kohli, turned to Siraj and began chanting ‘DSP, DSP’ – a reference to the Indian pacer being appointed the Deputy Superintendent of Police in Telangana in October earlier this year.

Watch Kohli’s gesture here:

Virat Kohli has been in significant controversy throughout the ongoing Melbourne Test. On Day 1 of the Test, Kohli came under scanner after a shoulder-bump incident with Sam Konstas, the Australian teenager who made his debut in the game. This was followed by a heated exchange between the two, with other Australian batter – Usman Khawaja – intervening to calm the two down.

On the next day, Kohli was booed by the Aussie crowd, and the Indian batting great provoked the fans further, urging them to boo loudly.

Kohli has been going through a rough patch with the bat, and despite a century in the first Test in Perth, he has done little to inspire confidence. However, his 36-run knock in the first innings in Melbourne gave hope for a return to form, as Kohli exercised significant restraint in playing the deliveries outside the off-stump – a channel exploited the most by Australian batters to find a nick off Kohli throughout the series.

His patience lasted 86 deliveries in the innings; moments before his dismissal, Kohli had a horrific mix-up with Yashasvi Jaiswal which caused the latter’s dismissal on 82, ending a potentially game-changing partnership early. This seemingly caused Kohli to lose focus, as he nicked one outside-off stump for an easy catch to wicketkeeper Alex Carey.

As India face a substantial run-chase in Melbourne, the side will be hoping on Kohli to display a similar grit.