Amidst no conclusive evidence on UltraEdge, an umpire’s call on Ball Tracking saved Virat Kohli, leading to a light-hearted exchange with Dean Elgar about the close call.
During the ongoing India vs. South Africa test match’s 24th over, Marco Jansen delivered a ball to Virat Kohli, who faced a tense moment. Kohli, slightly out of his crease, attempted to maneuver the ball but got beaten by its inward movement, striking him on the front pad. The confident LBW appeal was initially denied, prompting South Africa to review the decision. However, while UltraEdge showed no contact, the Ball Tracking system indicated an umpire’s call, signaling the ball would graze the leg stump.
Following the review, Dean Elgar remarked on Kohli’s close survival, to which Kohli humorously responded, playfully referencing a similar situation involving R. Ashwin in 2021, eliciting laughter from both players as they continued with the game.
Virat Kohli survives an umpire's call.
— Kohlisthetic (@TheKohlisthetic) January 3, 2024
Dean Elgar: "Oh you've survived a close one"
Virat Kohli: "Oh please this was much higher than what you got from Ash in 2021"
Both laughed it off pic.twitter.com/6Gr8urFya1
“Oh you’ve survived a close one,” Elgar said, to which Kohli replied, “Oh please this was much higher than what you got from Ash in 2021.”
Kohli’s reference humorously recalled the past frustration of a contentious decision in Capetown, highlighting a similar situation with Elgar. R. Ashwin’s delivery to Elgar had initially resulted in an LBW decision, but DRS surprisingly indicated it would miss the stumps due to bounce, sparking confusion. Further analysis showed a similar ball bouncing over the stumps due to Elgar’s significant stride. Despite the umpire changing his decision, Kohli’s visible frustration and Erasmus’ reaction of “That’s impossible!” had added to the heated moment.
In the present match, Elgar won the toss and chose to bat first. In a dominant display of bowling, the Indian pacers, notably Mohammed Siraj, shone by dismissing South Africa for just 55 runs in the first innings. Siraj’s exceptional performance with six wickets left the Proteas in a dire situation.
Last Updated on January 3, 2024
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