'Virat Ko Pata Tha Isse Kaise Garam Karna Hai': Ishant Sharma Recalls Getting One Match Ban After Heated Clash During 2015 Sri Lanka Series

Virat Kohli, as skipper, was known for his aggressive and passionate approach and inspired many of his teammates to bring out their best. Team India pacer Ishant Sharma recently revealed that the same intensity sometimes led to unintended consequences.

Speaking on Raj Shamani's YouTube channel, Ishant shared a fiery incident from Kohli’s very first series as full-time Test captain India's 2015 tour of Sri Lanka. The veteran pacer recalled how a confrontation with Dhammika Prasad proved costly, resulting in a one-match suspension.

Ishant Sharma talks about one match ban

Recalling the incident he revealed, "This happened during the 2015 Sri Lanka Test series. 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, him and I kept going back-and-forth."

"But suddenly, Dinesh Chandimal came from third man, and he elbowed me. In the heat of the moment, Ashwin got out, and I ran back to the dressing room - because I had to change my shoes. When I was doing it, I suddenly saw that Ravi Shastri and Sri Lanka's manager were leaving the dressing room. They thought that Dhammika and I had fought with each other. However, Dhammika Prasad followed me all the way into the Indian dressing room,".

He admitted that Kohli’s provocation played a role in how things went out of hand. He 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 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 on their face. And got banned."