Virat Kohli was upset with the Headingley crowd.
India had a horror first day in the third Test match at Headingly against England as they were bundled out for just 78 runs. It got worse when pacer Mohammed Siraj was targeted yet again by a section of the crowd at Headingly. While fielding at the boundary line, few spectators threw a ball at him, as revealed by wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant at the end of the first day’s play.
India skipper Virat Kohli didn’t like what he saw. However, the Indian contingent is yet to lodge a complaint. This is not the first time for the right-arm pacer to have an unpleasant experience with the crowd, as he was subject to abusive language by crowds Down Under during India’s recent tour of Australia earlier this year. At that time, Siraj immediately told the umpires and stand-in captain Ajinkya Rahane of the incident. And this time too Siraj had to deal with some rude spectators at Headingly.
“I think, somebody (from the crowd) threw a ball at Siraj, so he (Kohli) was upset. You can say whatever you want, chant, but don’t throw things at fielders. It is not good for cricket, I guess,” Rishabh Pant said at the end of the first day’s play.
A forgettable Day 1 at Headingly for team India
Nothing went right for the Kohli-led India side apart from winning the toss at Headingly, as the English bowlers were right on the money. Veteran seamer James Anderson was brilliant with the new ball as he picked up the key wickets of KL Rahul, Cheteshwar Pujara, and Virat Kohli in his opening spell. From there, it all went quickly downhill for India as the rest of the batters too imploded.
Barring Rohit Sharma, who batted for more than 100 balls, no other batsman looked in control, and India registered three ducks in the innings. Indian bowlers too struggled to take wickets as England openers Haseeb Hameed and Rory Burns added an unbeaten 120 run-stand and ensured the team already has a handy lead of 42 runs at end of the first day’s play.
