Former Australia pace spearhead Mitchell Johnson blasted India captain Virat Kohli as “disrespectful” and “silly” in his approach to fellow skipper Tim Paine during the Perth Test.
The pair had heated exchanges during the game that Australia won, at one point prompting intervention from the umpire.
It was reported that Kohli belittled Paine as just “a stand-in captain”, although India’s team management angrily denied he said it.
The retired Johnson said the famously combative Kohli’s antics were unnecessary.
Johnson writes in a column for Fox Sports: “At the end of the match, you should be able to look each other in the eyes, shake hands and say ‘great contest’.
“Virat Kohli could not do that with Tim Paine, shaking the Australian captain’s hand but barely making eye contact with him. To me, that is disrespectful.”
Kohli, though, described it as simply banter that was part and parcel of Test match cricket.