Former Australia cricketer Kerry O’Keeffe apologized to Virat Kohli for calling him “arrogant” during the fourth Test of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. Kerry O’Keeffe had criticized Kohli’s bumping into Australian debutant Sam Konstas on Day 1 of the Boxing Day Test at the Melbourne Cricket Ground.

Australian media has been targeting Virat Kohli throughout the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25. Kohli is in the middle of yet another controversy following his shoulder barge with Sam Konstas. The former Indian skipper was also slammed by Australian legends Ricky Ponting, Mark Waugh, and others.

Virat Kohli Built His Entire Career on Arrogance – Kerry O’Keeffe

After Kohli’s incident with Konstas on Day 1, Kerry O’Keeffe criticized the Indian star on-air, stating that Kohli had “built his entire career on arrogance.” He further added that Kohli couldn’t handle another young player matching his intensity.

“Kohli has built his entire career on arrogance. Kohli has built his whole career on arrogance. Suddenly, he identified that in a debutant and seemed to resent it,” O’Keeffe said on Thursday, as quoted by Hindustan Times.

Virat Kohli was charged by the ICC for his shoulder bump with Sam Konstas. The ICC fined Kohli 20% of his match fee for breaching Level 1 of the ICC Code of Conduct, specifically Article 2.12, which addresses “inappropriate physical contact with a Player, Player Support Personnel, Umpire, Match Referee or any other person (including a spectator during an International Match).” Kohli also received one demerit point, and it was his first offense within a 24-month period.

Want to Apologise for Calling Virat Kohli’s Behaviour Arrogance – Kerry O’Keeffe

The 75-year-old former Australian cricketer realized his mistake and apologized on Day 2 of the Test match. He stated that Kohli has a confident “swagger” in his game but added that Kohli may have reacted negatively. O’Keeffe added that aggression is what makes him a competitive cricketer.

“I want to apologise for calling Virat Kohli’s behaviour arrogance. I shouldn’t have said that. He has got a swagger and plays his cricket like that. I think when he saw another player showing swagger like him, he got a bit annoyed and reacted in that fashion. Kohli is a passionate cricketer and his aggression is what makes him a competitive cricketer,” said O’Keeffe.

Australia Lead by 310 Runs in First Innings Against India

Australia, batting first, posted a total of 474 runs. Steve Smith shone with a century (140 runs off 197 balls), and Sam Konstas (60), Usman Khawaja (57), and Marnus Labuschagne (72) scored half-centuries. Star pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah was the pick of the bowlers for India, registering figures of 4/99.

India got off to a rocky start as they lost Rohit Sharma early (3 off 5 balls). KL Rahul (24 off 43), Virat Kohli (36 off 88), and Yashasvi Jaiswal (82 off 118) have chipped. At the end of Day 2, India was 164/5, with Ravindra Jadeja (4) and Rishabh Pant (6) at the crease. Team India collapsed from 153/2 to 159/5.

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