Cricket is a popular sport and one that is filled with quite a lot of drama and entertainment. Owing to its popularity the cricketers are always under the constant scrutiny of the media and even a slight shift from normalcy means you are surrounded by controversy. It is not just the on-field stories that has the fans intrigued, the off-field incidents are equally interesting on their part. The year 2018 saw several big names from the world of cricket being dragged into contentious issues. Lets us have a quick recap of these episodes that got the whole world talking. Year-End Special: From AB de Villiers to Gautam Gambhir, Here’s the List of Cricketers Who Retired in 2018.

David Warner abusing Quinton de Kock: Former Australian Vice-Captain David Warner was caught abusing Quinton De Kock on the staircase of the Kingsmead Stadium in Durban during the first Test of the series. Television footage showed the left-handed batsman completely losing the plot and letting a tirade of expletives towards the South-African wicketkeeper. Warner later regretted his actions and claimed he was angered by the constant personal comments directed against him by the Proteas players particularly de Kock. Watch David Warner-Quinton de Kock Verbal Fight Video: Footage Shows Australia Vice-Captain in Heated Exchange with Proteas' Batsman.

Kagiso Rabada Controversy: The South Africa-Australia Test series of 2018 was marred by player retorting to unruly behaviour and Kagiso Rabada from South Africa came in for plenty of criticism for his temperament. His sending off of David Warner saw the ICC booking him for a level one offence. He was also accused of deliberately shoulder barging Steve Smith which resulted in him being banned for two tests. Proteas spinner Paul Harris infuriated Indian fans when he asked why was Kagiso Rabada was banned when Virat Kohli got away with his on-field antics during the Indian team’s visit there a few months back. Kagiso Rabada Charged for Steve Smith Send-off During South Africa vs Australia First Test

Ball-tampering scandal: The infamous Sandpaper incident which saw Australian Cricket being subject to ridicule and embarrassment was probably the biggest talking point of 2018 in cricket. Cameron Bancroft was caught by television cameras appearing to alter the condition of the ball in the third test of the South Africa-Australia series in Cape Town. He was later caught hiding the object and also lying to the on-field umpires when quizzed about it. Steve Smith later accepted he along with David Warner had plotted the entire ball tampering fiasco and the object used was sandpaper. The trio was slapped bans by CA. Steve Smith Opens Up on Ball-Tampering Scandal, Says He Had a Chance to Stop It.

Nagin Dance: In the last league game of the Nidahas Trophy, Bangladesh and Sri-Lanka played out a humdinger of a game which was embroiled in controversies. First, the constant introduction of 12th man by Bangladesh to transmit messages infuriated the opposition and when finally they won the game, the Bangla boys started with the now-infamous Cobra or Nagin dance. Their antics was seen as a deliberate attempt to disrespect the opposition team. In the very next game which Bangladesh lost to India courtesy some Dinesh Karthik heroics, the Sri-Lankan and Indian fans taunted the Bangla tigers with their own version of ‘Nagin’ dance. Bangladesh beat Sri Lanka to Reach Finals of Nidahas Trophy: Twitter Goes Crazy Over "Nagin" Dance By Players

Mohammad Shami-Hasin Jahan controversy: Indian pacer Mohammad Shami was accused of infidelity by his wife Hasin Jahan. With each passing day, the incident got murkier as Shami’s wife shared a number of photos and screenshots as proof of his adultery and also accused him of physical and mental harassment. She even approached the BCCI asking for the pacer to be banned while the media ran the story for several days on prime time. Hasin Jahan, Wife of Mohammed Shami Exposes Extra-Marital Affair of Husband: Shares Explicit Chats & Pictures of Cricketer.

Leave India comment: Indian skipper Virat Kohli was marred in a bitter controversy when he lashed out at a cricket fan for praising foreign cricketers. The star batsman asked the fan to leave the country if he thought highly of English and Australian batsman in comparison to the Indian players. The statement drew a sharp response from cricket fans on social media who trolled the cricketer for his comment. The controversy raged on several days till Virat himself addressed the situation and tried to deflect the topic. Bully Virat Kohli’s ‘Leave India’ Comment to Fan: These Ugly Episodes Prove Indian Captain Is Great Cricketer but Not a True Role Model!

Mithali Raj Controversy: When Mithali Raj was dropped from the Women’s team for the T20 semi-final against England, little did coach Ramesh Powar and skipper Harmanpreet Kaur know about the troubles ahead. The India batting great had scored two fifties in the build-up to the semis but she did not take kindly her removal from the team. India lost the game and upon arrival back home she accused the coach and the skipper of humiliating and plotting against her. The controversy took several twists and turns with Ramesh Powar defending his decision to drop Mithali Raj. Several former cricketers spoke in favour of Raj and blamed politics as the root cause of the whole fiasco. Mithali Raj's Email to BCCI: Senior Cricketer Accuses Coach Ramesh Powar of Discrimination During the Women’s T20 World Cup.

Ishant Sharma Ravindra Jadeja spat: Indian cricketers Ravindra Jadeja and Ishant Sharma are known for their fiery temperament and it was evident once again when the two got into an ugly confrontation in the second test of the Australia India series. Footage released by Fox TV showed Jadeja and Ishant pointing fingers at each other while Ishant was also heard hurling abuses at his teammate. Ravindra Jadeja had been previously caught in a similar situation with Suresh Raina back in 2013. With Ishant Sharma and Ravindra Jadeja refusing to stop, Mohammad Shami stepped in to sort the matter between the two but not before they had made a mockery of themselves before the entire world. Ishant Sharma & Ravindra Jadeja’s Argument During Day 4 of IND vs AUS, 2nd Test Sparks Controversy Suggesting Not Everything is Fine in the Team (Watch Video).

Virat Kohli Tim Paine duels: Virat Kohli and Tim Paine were having a constant go at each other during the recently concluded test match at Perth. The situation was so tense between the duo that they even almost chest bumped each other when Tim Paine was at a strike during Australia’s batting. Stump microphones also picked up Tim Paine sledging Indian batsman Murli Vijay while making references to his rival Virat Kohli. The heated battle continued right till the very end while there is divided opinion on who was the aggressor in the contest. Virat Kohli vs Tim Paine War Intensifies on the Day 4 of India vs Australia 2018, 2nd Test; Umpires Intervene (Watch Video).

These were some of the controversies surrounding the cricketers that found mention in all the conventional and social media platforms. These incident were also polarising in nature and drew sharp reactions from fans and experts alike.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Dec 21, 2018 03:47 PM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).