Ex-Australian cricketers drag Virat Kohli and Jasprit Bumrah's name while defending Matthew Kuhnemann's controversial bowling action, say 'Kohli was hit with one of the softest sanctions of all time'

Over a month after the Border-Gavaskar Test series ended, Virat Kohli has made a RETURN to the Australian media conversation. In the midst of the controversy surrounding the bowling action of Australian spinner Matthew Kuhnemann, who has been accused of "chucking," Kohli's name made headlines once more due to his altercation with Sam Konstas and the punishment he received for it.

After Sri Lanka team players had concerns about Kuhnemann's bowling during his dominant performance in the Test series against them last week, he was reported for a questionable bowling action. Australia achieved a historic 2-0 thumping thanks to the left-arm spinner's 16 wickets at 17.18, but his action will now need to be evaluated to ensure it is legal. Before delivering, a bowler is permitted to extend their elbow by 15 degrees. Anything over that is illegal.

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Aussie cricketers mention Virat and Bumrah

In the midst of the storm, Australian cricket writer Ben Horne called the ICC "hypocrites" and brought up Kohli's incident with Konstas. The former India captain purposefully shoulder-barged Konstas, but he was not banned.

"Virat Kohli was hit with one of the softest sanctions of all time, yet match officials in Sri Lanka were happy to make an example out of a five-Test orthodox spinner over a marginal bowling action. They are completely different situations that don’t even belong in the same conversation other than the all too familiar running theme that the game’s governing body is sport's biggest toothless tiger...until an easy target (Kuhnemann) presents itself," Horne wrote for the Daily Telegraph.

In an interview with SEN Radio, former Australia captain Tim Paine asked why Kuhnemann was being singled out, stating that his action was quite similar to that of India's premium fast bowler Jasprit Bumrah. For the same reason, numerous professionals have examined the latter, but according to ICC, his arm "hyperextends" rather than bends.

"I think there's a bit of flexion, not dissimilar to a Jasprit Bumrah. I think he'd be flat as a tack I'd imagine. In cricket, being accused of throwing is not a great mark to have against your name. You're being accused in a way, of cheating. I imagine in such a public forum, that would be very hard for him to deal with that. He's probably walked off that day on top of the world, and by the time he's back in the hotel room he's at absolute rock bottom because he's fighting, if you like, to save his career," Paine said.