Hardik Pandya Completely Ignores Virat Kohli, Video Goes Viral

Hardik Pandya, who was the stand-in captain for India in the 1st ODI against Australia, ignored Virat Kohli during a field-setting discussion in the match. The visuals suggest Virat Kohli, Hardik Pandya, and Kuldeep Yadav were contemplating a field placement, and seemingly upon not reaching an agreement, captain Pandya took matters in his own hand to guide the fielder to move and take the position. Kohli seemingly wasn’t pleased with Pandya’s decision.

It was the 21st over of the game, and a new batter had just come in in the form of Josh Inglis. Australia were 139 for 3 and the bowl was in the hand of Kuldeep Yadav. Before delivering the ball, Yadav saw Kohli and Pandya talk about a field placement. While Kohli was pointing toward a direction where the fielder was needed, Pandya apparently did not take notice of Virat and placed the fielder where he felt was necessary. Here’s the clip of the episode.

IND vs AUS 1st ODI: Fans not pleased with Hardik’s attitude towards Kohli
Some of the fans were not pleased with the action of Hardik Pandya and took to Twitter to criticise the all-rounder. Some saw this as disrespect, whereas some termed Pandya as “arrogant”. Here are a few of the many reactions by fans.

Ind vs Aus 1st ODI: Match summary
India’s stand-in captain Hardik Pandya won the toss and put Australia in to bat in the day-night game. Batting first, Australia did not get the best of starts as Travis Head fell early after adding just 5 runs on the board. Following the wicket, the Australian innings settled with Mitchell March and Steve Smith showcasing risk-free cricket and scoring at the run rate of above 5.

At the score of 72, Ravindra Jadeja got the wicket of Steve Smith and broke the partnership that was beginning to look dangerous. Smith’s wicket brought Marnus Labuschagne to the crease. Labuschagne and Marsh continued the flow of runs and built a quick 50-run stand, however, soon after, Marsh, who was going strong, fell for 81. After that, Australia lost its way and lost wickets at regular intervals. From 139 for 3, Australia’s innings fell apart and ended at a meagre 188 runs after 35.4 overs.