Captains Kohli, Paine get verbal and call for umpires warning

Umpire Chris Gaffaney (left) watches India captain Virat Kohli and Australia skipper Tim Paine bump into each other during Day Four of the second Test at Perth yesterday. Pic/Getty Images

Warring captains Virat Kohli and Tim Paine yesterday resumed their verbal duel, forcing on-field umpire Chris Gaffaney to warn both the players on the fourth morning of the second Test between India and Australia here.

During the 71st over bowled by Jasprit Bumrah, the respective captains were seen exchanging words after Kohli decided to field close to the non-striker and Gaffaney had to step in.

"You're the one that lost it yesterday. Why are you trying to be cool today?" Paine told Kohli. "That's enough, that's enough," Gaffaney interrupted. "Come on, play the game. You guys are the captains. Tim, you're the captain."

Paine replied: "We're just having a conversation. There's no swearing ... keep your cool Virat." Kohli said something which couldn't be picked up by the microphones. A couple of balls later, the warring duo almost came close to chest bumping when the India skipper walked in front of Paine while he was completing a run. Kohli later appeared to plead his case to square-leg umpire Kumar Dharmasena as Paine and Usman Khawaja continued to extend Australia's second-innings lead.

"I reckon it's a sign Kohli is starting to lose it," former Test bowler Damien Fleming said on SEN radio. India commentator Sanjay Manjrekar wasn't too pleased with Kohli's behaviour but former Australian skippers Ricky Ponting and Michael Clarke said they had no issue with the verbal exchange between the two captains and that no line has been crossed so far. Tensions had flared-up towards the end of day three with Kohli and Paine exchanging verbal volleys as the game headed for a nail-biting finish.

Josh Hazlewood

Verbals done in good spirit: Josh Hazlewood
Perth: The onfield verbal duel between rival captains Virat Kohli and Tim Paine has been one of the talking points of the second Test here but Australia pacer Josh Hazlewood yesterday played it down, saying it was done in good spirits. "I think it was all good fun, it's quite competitive out there as you know and there's going to be words from time to time but it was all in good spirits," Hazlewood said. "I don't think we read too much into it, we go about our work as we see fit and the Indians can do what they like. We control what we control and our behaviour is what we control. We'll worry about that and let everything else take care of itself."

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