Virat Kohli does not beat Tim Paine when it comes to handling emotions

The first two matches in the Australia versus India series have confirmed what Test cricket needs more of two evenly matched teams with strong bowling attacks operating on pitches that provide encouragement for the leather flingersIt has been compelling Test cricket with some determined batting and a bit of theatre thrown in It probably didnt hurt that there was also a bit of danger included in the Perth Test where batsmen were occasionally fending for their safetyOutstanding LyonWhile most bowlers in the series have had their moments Nathan Lyon has been outstanding Virat Kohli is far and away the most skilful of the batsmen on show with Cheteshwar Pujara displaying unmatched defiance and Marcus Harris being the most promising newcomerIn the captaincy stakes tyro Tim Paine has had the better of Kohli whose emotions tended to get the better of him in the tense atmosphere of the Perth Test A captain should try and maintain an even emotional keel wherever possible but Kohli is not one who adheres to this dictumHis dismissal in the first innings a disputed catch seemed to derail his train of thoughtfor the remainder of the match From then on his attention was divided between getting the upperhand with his Australian counterpart and attempting to win the match The moment a captains attention is drawn from the sole objective of winning the match hes in troubleThe conjecture over Kohlis first innings dismissal highlights the ICCs clouded thinking over catch referrals to the third umpire Its the actual referral of the catch to video replay that causes most of the controversy and that process should cease immediatelyThe decision should be made on the field where the umpires if they know what to look for are the best judges of what has happened Because of the foreshortening effect the replay of low catches is always inconclusive In most cases a fielder who claims a catch is then perceived as a cheat by the evidence shown to the publicUnfair on fieldersThis is not fair on the fielder If such flimsy evidence was brought into a court of law it would be summarily dismissed by any selfrespecting judge or magistrateAnd on the evidence available so far the Indiansaregoodplayersofspin theory should also be scrapped Even Kohli has had his troubles when facing Lyon and despite his first innings century in Adelaide Pujara has often been reduced to the negative tactic of charging pad first with the bat trailing in his wakeLyon is a fine bowler and much improved since he started to curve the ball away from righthand batsmen His dismissal of Kohli and then Murali Vijay in the space of seven runs was classic offspin bowling one delivery clipping the outside edge and the other curving away and spinning back through the gap created between bat and padThe Indian batsmen need to find a way to combat Lyon and that doesnt include replicating the suicidal approach of Rishabh Pant This absorbing series has people talking positively about Test cricket For the home team its brought the welcome news that fans are responding to Australias fighting brand of cricketHowever a perfect indication of the battle Test cricket is waging to stay relevant came the night following the thrilling second Test Without any time to savour the titillating Test the BBL staged the first of its many T20 contestsMore hardfought contests neededAnd to make matters worse the first day at the MCG the first really meaningful Test match at the ground for sometime will only be finished by a few moments before another of the seemingly endless BBL matches will commence in another cityThis is the competition that confronts modern Test cricket that and the short attention span of the fans Consequently Test cricket needs more matches like the first two Tests hardfought contests between two evenly matched teams on a surface that gives every player a chance to excelCatch up on all the latest sports news and updates here Also download the new midday Android and iOS apps to get latest updates