Sri Lanka cricketer Kusal Mendis clarified his remark on Virat Kohli which came after the Indian batter had scored his 49th ODI century in the ongoing ICC World Cup 2023. Mendis had refused to congratulate Kohli on his achievement during a press conference.
Ahead of Sri Lanka’s game against Bangladesh in Delhi, Mendis was asked if he would like to pass on his tribute to Kohli. In a response that later went viral on social media, Mendis had bemusingly said, “Why I would congratulate him?”
Meanwhile, Sri Lanka’s World Cup 2023 campaign ended with only two wins in 9 matches which resulted in them missing out on the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 qualification.
On returning home after the abysmal CWC campaign, Kusal Mendis clarified that he was “wrong” in his response and clarified the reason behind his rather blunt reply to the journalist.
"On that day I went for the press conference and I was not aware that Virat had scored a century, When suddenly that journalist asked that question, I didn’t know what to say, And also I didn’t understand the question clearly. Scoring 49 ODI tons is not an easy job to do, Virat is one of the brilliant cricketers in the world, later I realized what I said was absolutely wrong I now feel I shouldn't have reacted the way I did," he said, as quoted by Sri Lanka's Asian Mirror.
Recently, the Sri Lanka cricket (SLC) was suspended by the ICC board after interference from the government.
