#INDvAUS: Australian media makes the game dirtier than ever, compares Virat Kohli to animals in a racist post

A lot has been spoken since India's emphatic victory against Australia in the Bengaluru. With Virat Kohli and Co squaring the four-match series 1-1, we are left with two mouthwatering Tests to look forward to.

However, in-spite of the game on the field being top-notch, all the headlines in the past few days had been hogged by what will now be remembered as the 'Cheatgate'.

Aussie skipper Steve Smith's 'brain fade' moment - where he looked up to his dressing room to sneak advice for a DRS referral towards the end of the second Test - and Kohli's subsequent accusation of the visitors indulging in systematic wrong-doing, snowballed into a massive controversy.

"I saw that two times happening when I was batting out there. I pointed it out to the umpire as well, that it's happened twice, that I've seen their players looking upstairs for confirmation, and that's why the umpire was at him," said Kohli in the post-match media interaction in Bengaluru.

There is no doubt in the fact that what Kohli has said is huge. To lay such an accusation at an opponent - that's representing it's country - is a massive call. More so when there is absolutely no substantial proof to back your claim.

The Indian skipper, though, was backed to the hilt by the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI). Even former captains Sunil Gavaskar and Sourav Ganguly were vociferous in their support of Kohli. For that matter, former Australian captain Michael Clarke, too, expressed his doubts about Smith's rather dubious explanation.

On the other hand, Smith wasn't short of support either. Aussie head coach Darren Lehmann and assistant coach David Saker minced no words in rebutting Kohli's claims, with Saker going ahead and terming them 'offensive'. "I find the allegations questioning the integrity of Steve Smith, the Australian team and the dressing room, outrageous," added Cricket Australia CEO James Sutherland in an official statement.

The Indian camp was further aggrieved when Smith was let off without any punishment by the International Cricket Council (ICC). Even if Kohli didn't have any evidence to back his bold claim, Smith's personal guilt in Bengaluru was there for all to see. Justifiably, the BCCI went ahead and filed an official complaint against Smith and Peter Handscomb with the ICC.

Just as one thought that this issue was going to engulf every aspect of Australia's tour to India, the BCCI decided to call for truce and put an end to the entire drama. "We thought we have had a great Test match and no one wants the focus to be shifted from cricket. We are hopeful that before Virat and Smith go out for the toss in Ranchi, they will sit across the table and amicably sort out the differences," said Diana Edulji.

If you're a lover of the game, you'd welcome this action by the BCCI. The action on the field was, in fact, thrilling, and nothing should be allowed to take away it's limelight.

But hold on. As everyone's focus was about to shift to the third Test in Ranchi, a reputed media house in Australia decided to make the game dirtier than ever and stoop to an unimaginable level.

FOX Sports Australia ran a poll on Friday in which they asked their followers to vote for the vettel (sports villain) of the week, and shockingly, their four nominees were a panda, a kitten, a dog and India captain Virat Kohli. "Recent events have prompted a return of our Vettel of The Week award. Kids, ask your grandparents. The rest of you know the drill," read the caption of the post.

Understandably, fans from all over the world were appalled at the disrespectful, racist post, with several of them slamming the media house in the comments section. FOX Sports Australia, on it's part, was shameless in it's replies to the comments, adding a heavy dose of sarcasm to drive home their point.

Here's the pathetic post: