No Fine for Virat Kohli Highlights BCCI’s Double Standards: Digvesh Rathi Comparison Sparks Debate

No Fine for Virat Kohli Highlights BCCI’s Double Standards: Aakash Chopra had a few subtle words about BCCI's double standard regarding Kohli's aggresive celebration, pointing the finger at Punjab Kings captain Shreyas Iyer. Kohli's act was compared to that of Lucknow Super Giants bowler Digvesh Rathi, who was fined for his notebook celebration.

Kohli played a distinctive role against the Punjab Kings in Chandigarh, scoring a record fourth half-century and walking away with a seven-wicket win for the visitors last Sunday. The moment Jitesh Sharma hit the winning run, Kohli celebrated by almost intimidating Iyer, and that clip went viral across social media.

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On his YouTube channel, Chopra wondered why Kohli had not been penalized by the BCCI, while Digvesh had been penalized for his notebook celebration on both occasions.

"What caught my eye was that Digvesh Rathi did a 'notebook' celebration. He did it once and got fined. He did it a second time and got fined. He got scared the third time, saying he was not earning as much as he would lose in fines. So he has started writing something on the ground," Chopra said.

"Then we saw Virat Kohli's celebration at the end of the PBKS-RCB match, that was also pure aggression. However, no one said anything to him. There is not even a rap on the knuckles. Nobody has pulled him up for that, but you did that when Digvesh Rathi did a 'notebook' celebration," he added.

Digvesh was fined 25% and awarded 1 demerit point on April 1 for a first offence against Punjab Kings' opener, Priyansh Arya. The second offence for dismissal of Mumbai Indians' Naman Dhir led to his fine of 50% and 2 demerit points.

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'I recall MS Dhoni was once fined...'

The former KKR batter also recounts Chennai Super Kings captain MS Dhoni being docked for stepping onto the field and confronting the umpires, being fined 50% of his match fee for infringement of the IPL Code of Conduct. Chopra felt that Kohli deserved similar punishment.

"I recall MS Dhoni was once fined 50 percent of his match fee because he entered the ground. He shouldn't have gone at all. 50 per cent of his match fee was immediately cut. It could have been more than that, but there was some action. However, it hasn't happened in Virat Kohli's case," he said.

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