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Usman Khawaja, Sam Konstas' opening partner had a front-row seat to the entire verbal altercation between Virat Kohli and the young Australian debutant during Day 1 of the MCG Test on December 26. The shoulder-bump episode between the duo was followed by a spell of verbal altercation, prompting Usman Khawaja to intervene and douse the situation. The on-field umpire also stepped in to ensure that the situation doesn't escalate further.
How Usman Khawaja douse tense verbal altercation between Virat Kohli and Sam Konstas
Following the conclusion of the day's play, Usman Khawaja shared his perspective on the incident and revealing how he de-escalated the tense situation between Kohli and Konstas.
Following the conclusion of Day 1's play, Usman Khawaja spoke to ABC Sport, Khawaja stated that he did not witness the initial interaction between the two players but observed them collide with each other when he turned his attention towards them.
"At the moment, I didn't see what happened. Like, I was walking kind of the other way. And then I just went, 'woah'. I kind of looked back and saw like they just as I turned around, I saw them collide and I was like, what's going on here? But yeah, it wasn't," Khawaja said.
"Sammy (Sam Konstas) was going, he was on fire. His beans were obviously going. I just came to diffuse the situation because I was like, I like the emotion. I like, you know, there was a bit of chirp going on between Sam and (Jasprit) Bumrah and Virat (Kohli) during the whole time, but I didn't want to be tainted by any physical contact," Khawaja further added.
Khawaja also said that he advised Konstas to focus on his batting and allow him to address the situation with Kohli. When questioned about his conversation with Kohli, Khawaja declined to comment, saying that such on-field interactions should remain within the confines of the game.
“I’ve known Virat a long time, he came to the academy when I was in the U-19s. I’ve known him for a long time. Been mates a long time, so I was like (to Sam) ‘you chill, chill, go bat, I’ll talk to him and I’ll sort this out and yeah, it was fine’,” Khawaja added.
"Something along those lines, yeah. You don't even know everything. You know guys, seriously! What goes on the field stays on the field," Australia's star opener concluded.
Later, Kohli had to face the music after the fiery incident as ICC punished him with a hefty fine. Kohli was fined 20 per cent of his match fee and was also handed one demerit point.
“Virat Kohli has been fined 20 percent of his match fee and awarded one demerit point for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct, ” ICC's statement read.
Konstas was a force to reckon with on Day 1 of the Boxing Day Test. The debutant displayed an aggressive batting style, playing shots all around the ground. He was particularly impressive against India's premier bowler, Jasprit Bumrah, taking him on with a fearless approach. Konstas disrupted Bumrah's rhythm early in his spell, preventing the bowler from settling into a comfortable groove. He employed unorthodox shots such as scoops and reverse scoops, effectively disrupting the bowlers' rhythm and achieving success with this unconventional approach. Konstas scored a quickfire 60 runs off 65 balls riding on six fours and two sixes and also stitched an important 89-run opening partnership with Usman Khawaja.
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