"Was Sledging His...": Australia Great Clarifies Comments About Virat Kohli During Border-Gavaskar Trophy
Mark Waugh created quite a stir during the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy as he commented on Virat Kohli's fielding
- NDTV Sports Desk
- Updated: March 03, 2023 07:49 am IST
Australia great Mark Waugh created quite a stir during the first Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Nagpur. In that match, Virat Kohli was responsible for two dropped chances. First, the former India skipper gave Australia's star batter Steve Smith a reprieve in the 16th over of the day. On the first ball of that over, Smith went for a drive against a fuller delivery and got a thick outside edge. Stationed at first slip, Kohli stretched his right hand but could not hold on to the ball.
Then in the second session, Peter Handscomb edged one off Jadeja. The ball got deflected after hitting wicketkeeper KS Bharat's gloves. Kohli, again fielding at slips, could not reach the ball. Former Australia star Mark Waugh, while doing commentary, pointed out: "Your legs have to be lot closer to be able to move quickly." Smith scored 37 while Handscomb was out on 31.
"Kohli was very high-up in his position. Should have stayed down a bit," Waugh added offered. "He should have done a little bit better. Almost as if he wasn't expecting it."
Now, Waugh has clarified his comments. Â "I wasn't sledging his batting. I was sledging his catching, which he did improve actually. He worked hard on it. But I cannot believe that Virat Kohli hasn't scored a century in 39 innings," Waugh said on Fox Cricket.Â
"The way he has batted and even his catching it shows that he has felt the pressure, no doubt about it. He is a great player so he is not used to not scoring runs but I did feel like that in Delhi he was getting back to his best."