In a shocking turn of events, Virat Kohli refused to shake hands with Travis Head after the SRH RCB game. This moment and controversy have taken centre stage now. Amidst this, the Australian opener, Head, has shared a story on Instagram. It is a picture of him bowling during the match. He doesn’t bowl often, but on Friday, he did that. And guess what? He also took a wicket, that of RCB skipper Rajat Patidar.
Travis Head’s Instagram Story
In an Instagram note, Travis Head wrote, “Keep the body guessing.” It is written at the bottom of the picture. It’s a gym term which advocates keep on trying newer things so that the body doesn’t get used to a routine because the moment it does, it reaches a plateau in regard to improvement.
This is what Head appears to be saying after bowling and taking a wicket. He is an out-and-out batter, but on Friday, he tried his hand at bowling, something not so common for him. Head’s post is kind of self-congratulatory.
What Happened In the Middle between Travis Head and Virat Kohli?
However, the post is nothing compared to what happened in the game. After RCB suffered a crushing 55-run loss chasing 256 for the win, Kohli refused to shake hands with Head. He did shake hands with SRH skipper Pat Cummins, but not with Head. It seems that there was something he was carrying on from his short stint at the crease. It’s not clear what triggered that, but during RCB’s chase, Kohli sledged Head and asked him to come and bowl “a few deliveries to him.”Â
Quite a few times this season, Head has come on as an impact player or has been substituted, but that wasn’t the case on Friday. He wasn’t substituted. Probably that was what Kohli wanted to say. Kohli said, “Now that you are not going to be substituted, you might as well bowl.”Â
To be fair to Head, he looked a bit clueless when all this was happening. However, when Kohli got out, Head retorted, “You are out, mate, before I could even come on to bowl.”
Irfan Pathan comments on the incident.Â
Former India all-rounder Irfan Pathan, who was commentating during those moments, however, later said the unfortunate incident could have been avoided. Irfan Pathan said, “What happened during the game, that can happen in the heat of the moment, but what happened after the game should not have happened.”
Going by Travis Head’s post, it appears he has already moved on from the controversy. He is only focusing on himself. There couldn’t have been a better post to cool things off a bit.
It is indeed a very unfortunate incident and one that could have been avoided. It’s not the question of who was at fault and who wasn’t. But those words exchanged were just banters, not even sledging. It was surprising that Virat Kohli reacted like that. He might have been perturbed by what was happening, and he reacted to it. He shook hands with other SRH players, but not with Head, which was a surprise. He has moved on, and great of him. But the media haven’t. Kohli too will move on from this.
Virat Kohli must now channelise all his energy and focus on the job at hand. RCB are playing Qualifier 1 and have GT in their ranks. They have a golden opportunity to reach the finals on the first attempt. Kohli must channelise his aggression, as that brings the best out of him. If he comes good, other teams have no chance. He needs two good nights, and RCB will be champions again. It’s easier said than done, though.
Let’s see how RCB performs in the playoffs stage.
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