India vs Australia: Match referee Chris Broad in soup over comments on Smith DRS call

Bengaluru: Steven Smith had a “brain fade” when seeking the dressing room’s consent for the DRS. But was it transgression on the part of match referee Chris Broad?

As per the ICC rules, the match referee isn’t supposed to discuss any issue with the media without the official body’s consent.

But Broad, allegedly told the Australian media after fourth day’s play that the only time umpires were aware of Australians looking up to the box during a review call was the Smith incident, denying Virat Kohli’s statement that India had brought it to the umpires’ notice earlier itself.

Smith and Peter Handscomb, his batting partner when the incident took place, appeared to have been looking towards their dressing room, in order to ask for help with whether to refer the lbw decision to the third umpire.

"I got hit on the pad and looked down to Petey (Peter Handscomb) and he said look up there, so I turned around and it was a bit of a brain fade on my behalf. I shouldn't have done that," Smith said in the post-match press conference after the Bengaluru Test.

"I was looking at our boys, so shouldn't have done that," added the Australian skipper.

Kohli had minced no words refuting Smith’s “brain fade” comment and lashed out at the Australian skipper saying: “I saw that two times happening when I was batting out there. I pointed it out to the umpire as well and it has happened twice I have seen their players looking upstairs for confirmation and that’s why the umpire was at him,” said Kohli.

“When he (Smith) turned back, the umpires knew exactly what was going on, because we observed that, told match referee also and the umpires that they have been doing that for the last three days and this has to stop,” he said.

“Because there is a line you don’t cross on the cricket field. Sledging and playing against the opponent is different. I don’t want mention the word but that falls under that bracket. I would never do something like that on the cricket field,” said Kohli.

Asked if the word, which he refused to utter, was cheating, Kohli said: “I did not say that you did.”