Virat Kohli breaks silence on ball-tampering allegation; calls it attempt to take focus away

Kohli rubbished rumours saying ICC's decision stands well over a newspaper's publication.

New Delhi: Few days after ICC found South African skipper Faf du Plesis guilty of ball-tampering in the 2nd Test against Austraia, a British tabloid published footage of Indian captain Virat Kohli applying saliva to the ball using some artificial substance during the first Test against England at Rajkot.

On the eve of 3rd Test at Mohali, Kohli rubbished the allegations saying that it is just an attempt to take the focus away from the ongoing series and ICC's decision stands well over a newspaper's publication.

This is just to take focus away from series; to me newspaper article doesn't matter over ICC's decision: Kohli on ball-tampering allegations pic.twitter.com/kj5qLNwbq2 — ANI (@ANI_news) November 25, 2016

"I don’t read newspapers, was told 5 days later that such things happened, I just laughed it off: Kohli on ball-tampering allegations, " said Kohli.

I don’t read newspapers, was told 5 days later that such things happened, I just laughed it off: Kohli on ball-tampering allegations pic.twitter.com/KhP7v30Gth

— ANI (@ANI_news) November 25, 2016

"This is just to take focus away from series; to me newspaper article doesn't matter over ICC's decision: Kohli on ball-tampering allegations," he added.

I'm surprised the issue of what I've been told came up in Rajkot but there was no mention until the result in Vizag," Kohli was polite but the sarcasm in his tone was not lost on anyone as he pointed what it meant to be poor losers.

We as cricketers respect that only. And allegations and speculations? I don't read newspapers so I'm not aware of these things, someone told me and I laughed it off. Some people are trying to take the focus away from the series ? good luck to them. But we're totally focussed on what we have to do," Kohli said firmly.

However the British journalist was not happy and had a leading question as a follow-up."You doing what Du Plessis was doing?" the journalist probed further.

"What was I doing?" was Kohli's polite counter-query. "If was doing something ICC would have spoken to me," he finished it off then and there.

ICC's clause which states - "if a team wants to lodge a complaint about ball tampering by a rival team or its player, it has to be done within five days of the completion of the Test match" – got Virat cleared off the charges instantly and no formal action could be taken against him.

Du Plesis, on the other end, was fined fined 100 per cent of his match fees after ICC reviewed the footage, in which Faf apearred to be applying saliva to the ball with a lolly in his mouth.

(With PTI inputs)