"Want to ask Virat Kohli, what would your wife and kids do when they watch?"- Billy Bowden on Ugly Incident

Former New Zealand umpire Billy Bowden has opened up on the controversy surrounding Virat Kohli and Sam Konstas during the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2024-25. Bowden blamed Kohli and felt that there shouldn't have been any physical touch from the Indian.

Virat Kohli-Sam Konstas incident became a huge talking point during the Test series between Australia and India late last year. The incident took everyone by surprise when Kohli barged his shoulder straight into the Sam Konstas.

In a series where the stakes were high, the incident led to some heated moments between both of them and Kohli was constantly targeted by the Australian cricket experts as well as the home crowd.

Also read: Virat Kohli-Rohit Sharma's teammate confirms Champions Trophy 2025 is their last ICC tournament

Billy Bowden breaks silence on Virat Kohli-Sam Konstas incident

During a podcast on 'Cyrus Says' Youtube channel, Billy Bowden was asked about the incident between Virat Kohli and Sam Konstas in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy played in Australia. Bowden was clear in his statement that there is no place for physical touch between the game.

He also suggested the way he would deal with such situations as an umpire. Despite calling him a great player, Bowden asked Kohli what his family would think when they see him doing such things on a cricket field.

"There shouldn't be any excuse for physical (touch). That shouldn't be at all over there. You try to make that happen. You try to see it before it actually explodes, but if you can't, you just allow it to take its course for a little while. I would just signal to both out, not just one," Bowden said.

"I would say to (Virat) Kohli, What would your wife think? What would your kid think seeing that and What would they say to you? You're a great player, but that wasn't a great look, what you've just done. Actions speak louder than words," he added.

Billy Bowden on Kohli-Konstas controversy:

"I would say to Kohli, What would your wife think? what would your kid think seeing that? What would they say to you? You're a great player, but that wasn't a great look, what you've just done" pic.twitter.com/V1pQZWKbeI

— ` (@WorshipDhoni) March 1, 2025

Billy Bowden retired from international cricket in 2015. However, he is currently in India to officiate in the International Masters League where the retired players from different countries are playing to win a coveted trophy.

What was the incident between Virat Kohli and Sam Konstas?

The incident happened during the Boxing Day Test between Australia and India in Melbourne after the end of an over in the morning session of Day 1. Konstas was moving towards his non-striker Usman Khawaja while Virat Kohli was also seen moving towards the youngster.

Kohli seemed to change path suddenly and barged his shoulder into Konstas. Both the players started having a heated conversation with each other before the umpire and Khawaja intervened to calm down the situation.

Kohli was constantly booed by the home crowd after this incident. He was even fined 20% of his match fees and awarded one demerit point for his altercation with Konstas. It was the debut international match for Konstas and he was taking the attack to India at that point.

Virat Kohli's current form

Virat Kohli is currently representing India in the ongoing Champions Trophy. He struck a magnificent ton against Pakistan recently to take India home comfortably in the end. Kohli scored an unbeaten 100 off 111 balls which included 7 fours.

The 36-year-old wasn't in great form in Test cricket but has returned to his best in his favorite format, which is the ODIs. He will be playing the 300th ODI of his career when he takes the field against New Zealand in the last league match of the tournament.