"Looks like Murphy has found his bunny already" - Twitterati reacts after Kohli loses his wicket to the off-spinner again in 3rd IND vs AUS Test

Team India batter Virat Kohli was dismissed for 22 runs toward the end of the first session of the third Test against Australia on Wednesday, March 1. The former skipper looked relatively settled on a tough surface in Indore but was trapped LBW by Todd Murphy to end his stay at the crease.

Kohli walked into bat in a precarious situation, with the scoreboard reading 34-2 in the eighth over. He held one end as wickets continued to tumble courtesy of poor shot selection and brilliance by the Australian spinners. India soon found themselves stuttering at 45-5 inside the first hour of play.

The ace batter, who has had issues with spin bowling of late, was defiant in his defense and found a way to keep the scoreboard ticking as well. However, the innings came to an abrupt end after he chose to play a nonchalant flick off the front foot against Todd Murphy, who came up around the wicket.

The ball turned enough to evade the bat and hit the pad. He unsuccessfully claimed a review and walked back as the team's highest scorer.

Kohli has now lost his wicket to Todd Murphy on three occasions now. Barring the first innings of the second Test, where he was controversially dismissed by Matthew Kuhnemann, the former skipper has been dismissed by the young off-spinner in the series so far.

Twitter praised the ace batter's approach on a difficult surface but expressed their frustration over a similar mode of dismissal. Here are some of the reactions on the social media platform.

Looks like Murphy has found his bunny already 😉
Kohli out to Murphy 3 times in a row now!
#INDvAUS

He got him in the first Test.
He got him in the second Test.
He gets him in the third Test.

Todd Murphy claims the wicket of Virat Kohli yet again!

#INDvAUS

Again, Virat Kohli did all the hard work but couldn’t get the big score

Todd Murphy gets Virat Kohli for the 3rd time in the series 🤯

#cricket #india #australia #indvsaus https://t.co/F1CKtDQwJZ

Kohli played well but on this deck you're never set.

He was picking the length early and playing late. Hence he was able to play forward or back (not caught in the crease). One mistake and now back in the hut.

From praying for a Kohli 100 to praying for India's 100, how the time changed 😭

Virat Kohli is currently accounting for 27% of Todd Murphy's Test wickets

#INDvAUS

Kohli officially out of Fab 4 to be honest

Virat Kohli gone for 22 that's worth 100 on some other pitches. Concentration, application, technique, everything in place. He couldn't have done much more right. India 70 for 6.
#INDvAUS

The BCCI is doing Kohli no favours by preparing such Day 1 pitches. While his competitors pile on centuries, he needs to struggle for even a 30 #INDvAUS #BGT

Defend only tougher balls
Remaining balls you need to control and make the runs for the team

That is not seen in kohli's batting

@CricCrazyJohns Frankly speaking Virat kohli should be dropped as well....his stat from last 3 years is worse than KL....

Kohli never looked comfortable against Murphy throughout the series. Going to be elite.

Team India tottering at 84-7 after Kohli's dismissal

The Men in Blue's misery continued as Australia struck at regular intervals to have a landmark session. Following Kohli's wicket, India were struggling at 70-6, the score worsening to 80-7 after KS Bharat departed after four overs.

All-rounders Ravichandran Ashwin and Axar Patel currently occupy the crease and got through till lunch with the score reading 84-7 after 26 overs of play.

How many runs will Team India score in the first innings at Indore? Let us know what you think.