Ishant Sharma recalls 2015 Colombo episode; blames Virat Kohli for ban

Ishant Sharma recently took fans back to a dramatic episode from 2015, when he was handed a one-match ban by the ICC during Virat Kohli’s early days as India’s Test captain.

This incident was from the India-Sri Lanka Test series, and Virat Kohli had just taken over as the full-time Test captain. The controversy unfolded in the third Test between India and Sri Lanka at Colombo.

Ishant was batting when Sri Lankan pacer Dhammika Prasad started targeting him with aggressive bouncers. Later, Prasad and Ishant had a heated exchange.

SHORTS

View More

Your daily dose of cricket!

Loading...

Ishant Sharma recalls 2015 Colombo controversy

Ishant Sharma said on Raj Shamani’s podcast, “Dhammika Prasad was bowling bouncers at me. I took a single, and as I was reaching the non-striker's end, I told him, 'You are too slow to hit me on the head.' This is what started it. Then, he and I kept going back-and-forth.”

Read Also: Watch: Waqar Younis tries Wanindu Hasaranga's celebration, remembers he doesn't have a finger

But things escalated when Sri Lanka’s Dinesh Chandimal suddenly elbowed Ishant in the midst of the on-field confrontation. Not just that, there was a misunderstanding in the dressing room that led the officials to believe there had been a fight between Ishant and Prasad.

Ishant further recalled, “They thought that Dhammika and I had fought with each other. However, Dhammika Prasad followed me all the way into the Indian dressing room.”

Virat Kohli knows how to rile me up: Ishant Sharma

But Ishant’s frustration boiled over after Virat Kohli told him that Chandimal followed him all the way to the Indian dressing room when he was changing his shoes. But he channeled his anger into the game, taking three key wickets and celebrating fiercely in the batters’ faces.

The former Indian pacer added, “Virat knows how to rile me up. I was unaware. That's when Virat told me, 'Woh tere peeche tujhe maarne aa gaya, aur tune kuch nahi kiya? Dhammika Prasad tujhe maarne aaya tha' (He came all the way to beat you, and you didn't do a thing?)

Then he made me watch the clip where Chandimal elbowed me. And I swear, I went mad. I am usually not that aggressive, but that day, my protective mode crept in. By then, my match fee had already gotten deducted. Then I went out to bowl, dismissed three batters, and celebrated in their faces. And got banned.”

Read Also: Shaheen Afridi shamelessly defends Haris Rauf, Sahibzada Farhan’s provocative gestures vs India

Virat Kohli fired Ishant Sharma up, ICC banned India bowler

However, the ICC took strict action, as both Ishant and Chandimal received one-match bans, while Prasad and Lahiru Thirimanne were fined half their match fees. The suspension points from Ishant’s ban also ruled him out of India’s first Test against South Africa later that year in Mohali.

Later, Virat Kohli reflected on the fiery incident and felt it worked perfectly in India’s favor. The clash fired up Ishant at just the right moment, turning his aggression into a weapon for the team. In the second innings, Ishant’s spell was relentless as he bowled 19 overs without giving away a single boundary. That kind of pressure completely unsettled the Sri Lankan batters.