The second day of the ongoing Delhi Test between India and Australia produced a gripping contest between bat and ball.
In reply to Australia’s first innings total of 263, the hosts were reeling at 139/7 before Akshar Patel (74) and R Ashwin (37) shared a 114-run stand to propel the team to 262.
Apart from the riveting contest, the second day’s play also grabbed the headlines for Virat Kohli’s controversial dismissal.
In the second session, Australia’s debutant spinner Matthew Kuhnemann trapped Virat in front of the stumps. The on-field umpire gave the decision as out and the star batter opted for the review.
After reviewing the replays, TV umpire also agreed with on-field umpire’s call as the ball appeared to hit the front pad and the ball almost simultaneously. As a result, the well-set Kohli had to take a long walk back to the pavilion for 44.
Sharing his two cents on the dismissal, former Australia cricketer Mark Waugh said it was a brave call from the on-field umpire Nitin Menon.
"It was a brave decision from the umpire against Kohli. Nine out of 10 times you would give that not out. There was too much doubt. If you want to err, you would err on the batter's side," Waugh said while commentating.
Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar, who was also part of the commentary panel, explained that the third umpire Richard Illingworth needed to be sure to overturn on-field umpire's decision as the soft signal was out.
"I don't think the problem was whether the ball will hit the stumps or not. It was whether he (Kohli) hit it. It was close. We have to remember that he was given out on field. Now the third umpire needed to be absolutely sure that Kohli hit it first for the decision to be overturned," Gavaskar said on-air.
Batting in the second innings, the visitors did well to finish the day on 61/1, stretching their overall lead to 62 runs. Travis Head and Marnus Labuschagne were unbeaten in the middle on 39 and 16, respectively.