Virat Kohli, Steve Smith square off in verbal clash

Steve Smith hauled in another screamer, but it’s the catch he could not take that is hurting Australia’s chances to claim a famous victory in the second Test.

“It is disappointing to have lost”. While K L Rahul and Murali Vijay have been more consistent than the others, especially Rahul on the turning wickets prepared at Pune and Bengaluru for the first two Tests against Australia, both have a persistent shoulder-injury problem.

India and Australia share an acrimonious past on the cricket field and tempers had been running high during the second of the four-match Test series. First, it was Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane’s batting in the second innings backed by an effective stand towards the end between Wriddhiman Saha and batting bunny Ishant Sharma which enabled India to score 274 in the second innings. It doesn’t make a difference to me whether I perform or not, as I just look to learn from failures. “It has always been slow and low, they know exactly what to expect there and we know what to expect as well”. Being a young guy in a big series, with the team up against the wall, he has shown great character three times out of four.

According the International Cricket Council Standard Test Match Playing Conditions for 2016-17, the umpires may decline a review if they believe the fielding captain or batsman has received any outside input. “They, you know, were just trying to get our captain out like we have been trying to get Virat out”. If this was a one-off, I don’t think that would have happened. He had looked to glance a delivery through the square leg, but the inswinging ball from Hazlewood hit Kohli’s pad at the point of making contact with the bottom of the willow. We would have liked anything over 200, we thought from 225 there was only one victor.

Smith admitted he should not have looked at the dressing room for any suggestions and said it was brain fade.

Paceman Josh Hazlewood said he and Mitchell Starc had erred by not attacking the stumps and bringing the pitch’s variable bounce into play. “May be I should have just put my hands up and done it (reviewed)”, said Smith.

“It could have been important”.

“Shaun was looking pretty good, so it was a disappointing wicket”, he said. It was a quite emotional game for us, quite draining as well, everyone got along together. “It’s a massive series and you want to have all the technology that you can – if it’s available”, the fast bowler said.

Although it is understood that the only instance of which the match officials were aware was Smith’s very blatant breach in the heat of this afternoon’s battle, and which they moved quickly to step in and quash.

“I love challenging myself against the best”, Lyon said. “If this was a one-off, I don’t think that would have happened”, he told India Today.