IPL Controversies- Part 21: Virat Kohli Breaks ACSU Protocol, Meets Anushka Sharma
Kohli had gone to meet Anushka in a corridor next to the VIP box. The match had not been called off at that point, which meant that Kohli had violated of the rules set by the ACSU.
Royal Challengers Bangalore were hosting Delhi Capitals at the M Chinnaswamy Stadium on May 17, 2015. Delhi put up 187/5, thanks to some explosive batting from Quinton de Kock (69 in 39 balls) and JP Duminy (67 not out in 43). Then it rained for a brief while. Overs were not docked when play resumed. IPL Controversies- Part 20: Kieron Pollard Tapes His Mouth in 2015.
However, it started to rain again after Jayant Yadav bowled an over and Zaheer Khan two balls. Chris Gayle and Virat Kohli walked off the ground along with the Delhi cricketers. Play did not resume. The teams shared points. That one point helped Bangalore make it to the top two in the league and play Qualifier 1.
After his return to the pavilion, Kohli had gone to meet his girlfriend (later wife) Anushka Sharma in a corridor next to the VIP box. The umpires had not called the match off – yet – which meant that Kohli had left the playing area to meet a person who was not part of the match, during the match. This was violation of the rules set by the Anti-Corruption and Security Unit. IPL Controversies- Part 19: Andre Russell’s Stop-Start Delivery in 2014.
An ACSU officer explained his displeasure in an interview with the Hindustan Times: “He is the captain of the team, so he is very much aware of the rules that apply to players and more so to a captain. Nobody is allowed to meet players while the match is on. And players can’t go out of their designated area to meet anyone either.”
Another ACSU officer added: “Players’ wives and girlfriends do attend matches but they sit in a separate enclosure. I’ve never come across anyone meeting them while the match is on.”
(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Sep 13, 2021 12:30 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).