‘Kohli used a sweet to shine the ball’

Television cameras caught Kohli, who finished on 49 not out on the final day in Rajkot, putting his right hand towards his mouth. The 28-year-old can be seen rubbing his fingers in his mouth, inside of which is a sweet. He then appears to shine one side of the ball. Kohli has not been charged by the International Cricket Council (ICC), although it is not yet clear whether they aware of the footage. On Tuesday, South Africa captain Faf du Plessis was found guilty of a near-identical incident which occurred during the fourth day’s play in the second Test against Australia. Controversial footage showed Du Plessis shining the ball while having a mint in his mouth. The 32-yearold repeatedly sucked the mint and then licked his finger before rubbing the ball. He was found guilty of ball-tampering at a hearing on Tuesday and was fined his entire match fee from the Hobart Test. The Indian Virat Kohli reached a career-high fourth position in the ICC Player Rankings for Test batsmen, after producing a man of the match performance in the second Test against England.

Stuart Broad will reportedly wear a moon boot on his right foot in a bid to ensure he is fit for next month’s crucial fourth Test in Mumbai. He has spent the second Test in Visakhapatnam in some discomfort after damaging a tendon in the field on the opening morning. But he took four for 33 as India were dismissed for 204 in their second innings, and he remained confident that the break between Saturday’s third Test in Mohali and the match in Mumbai will give him the time he needs. “Hope the rest will put me back in shape for fourth Test,” he said.