Allowing Virat Kohli runner was fair play - Michael Clarke
The Australians went down under when 21-year-old http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Virat-Kohli-c95424 made his career best century but with the controversial use of a runner. Kohli’s unprecedented 118 runs helped India to a splendid five-wicket victory. The young player had severe cramps in his
legs after the 31st over. He appreciated the Australian captain, Michael Clarke in the end for allowing him a runner.
ICC regulations clearly state that when a batsman requests for the support of a runner, the opposition captain has the authority to either accept or decline it. It is still a burning issue whether to use a runner by a batsman due to cramps because it is
a situation that is directly related to the player’s fitness and his endurance to exhaustion. Critics insist that a runner should only be called in when there is an unforeseen injury during the game.
An example for this had been set during last year's Champions Trophy when England's skipper, Andrew Strauss refused to allow a runner for the cramping Graeme Smith and Clarke would also have been well within his rights to deny a runner for Kohli.
The Aussie captain might have been sympathetic to Kohli due to the hot and humid weather that prevailed during the match and thus granted him a runner as Kohli was struggling to run between the wickets. This didn't prove to be a good idea as Kohli turned
out to be the key player who ultimately drove India to victory. India has now taken a lead of 1-0 in the three match ODI series.
Clarke later commented that he had no problem with Kohli’s runner, squashing talks that if he hadn't allowed one, the match result could well have been in Australia’s favour. He defended his decision, saying that he showed great sportsman spirit and that
it can happen to anyone. He also stated that it was “fair-play” as Kohli was in pain and he clearly needed a runner.
The 29-year-old lower middle order batsman himself struggled with cramps during his brilliant innings of 111 runs not out that was clearly over shadowed by Kohli’s century. Clarke admitted that he found it quite difficult early on and the wicket was slow.
This defeat has put Australia in a difficult position as they earlier also hadn't perform well in the Test series against http://www.senore.com/Cricket/India-c750, losing by 2-0.
Michael blamed it on the conditions and heat in Visakhapatnam. He conceded that the main focus of their innings was to keep more wickets in hand so that they can put up a decent total. However, he was happy with his century coming after a dry spell in the
Test series.
Although, the skipper looked upset on the defeat, he was still adamant as he stated that there were things that can be learned from this match in which youngsters, Mitchell Starc and John Hastings made their debuts. He described the mood of his squad as
“positive”. He was especially satisfied with Michael Hussey and Cameron White and saw a lot of potential in debutante Hastings’ bowling.
http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Clarke-c51120 praised Kohli’s blazing century and applauded his partnerships with Yuvraj Singh and Suresh Raina. He also thought that it was indeed commendable how Kohli did not let the pressure and nerves build on him.
On the other hand, Kohli revealed that he remained under immense pressure and was struggling to get runs in the match. Kohli is being compared to the likes of Sachin Tendulkar but the http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Delhi-c780 batsman still feels that his century does not guarantee him a place
in the Indian squad, since the competition for the number three slot was tough.
Moreover, Australian team has lost its two key players for the series as pacer Doug Ballinger and batsman Mike Hussey have returned to http://www.senore.com/Cricket/Australia-c746. Ballinger is suffering from stomach muscle strain while Hussey has to appear in a Sheffield Shield match as
part of Ashes' preparations. It would now be interesting to see if Aussies are able to draw the three match ODI series.
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