During the T20I opening encounter between India and New Zealand at Feroz Shah Kotla Stadium in Delhi, Indian skipper was spotted using the walkie-talkie in the dugout.
Advertisement
When Indian openers were firm batting brilliantly at 139/0, the cameraman’s focus shifted to Virat Kohli who got hold of the device and used it in a suspicious manner.
This raised quite a many eyebrows as well. The real question pops up whether is it advisable for the cricketers to use the walkie-talkie while the match is going on.
The answer to the question is yes. The Indian players and the team management are not allowed to access the mobile phones as per the rules of International Cricket Council.
But, they are free to use the walkie-talkie in order to pass certain valuable information from the dugout to the team’s dressing room. We have seen the umpires using it.
This is the first time, Kohli’s walkie-talkie act caught the headlines. Some media channels and other sources think that Kohli has breached the ICC code of conduct.
But, Virat Kohli was within the limits as he was not in violation of any rule. As per the ICC’s document for Minimum Standards, point 4.3.1 states the following rule.
“For the avoidance of doubt, none of the foregoing provisions shall operate to prevent: the use of two-way handheld device that uses dedicated frequencies over short distances (i.e. a ‘walkie-talkie’) by Player Support Personnel for the purpose of communication between the dugout and dressing room area for medical and/or tactical reasons only, provided that such communication devices are suitably encrypted to avoid detection by any third party in the nearby vicinity…”
