Sanjay Manjrekar and Murali Kartik engaged in a heated on-air exchange during during the India-Sri Lanka Test in Galle
The banter turned personal, with Kartik taking a dig at Manjrekar’s pout, while Manjrekar hit back
The exchange went viral on social media, although Manjrekar eventually attempted to defuse the situation
The ongoing India vs Sri Lanka 1st Test witnessed a bizarre incident on air in which commentators Sanjay Manjrekar and Murali Kartik were involved in a heated exchange. The incident occurred during the lunch break on day three, when Kartik joined the broadcast from the studio while Manjrekar was stationed in Galle.
Kartik took a dig at Manjrekar's distinctive pout while speaking on live television, joking that it sometimes gets difficult to understand what the former India batter is saying.
Manjrekar responded by asking the director to switch the camera to Ajinkya Rahane, who was making his international commentary debut, suggesting that Rahane was a more pleasant person to speak to.
The exchange between the two former India cricketers quickly went viral on social media, with fans reacting to the increasingly personal banter between the commentators.
“A gentle request and a big request from one and all here: you have the pout of the century, but because of your pout, we are not able to understand what you say. So, please limit that pout,” said Kartik.
Manjrekar did not hold back in his response, taking a swipe at Kartik while asking the broadcast director to focus on Rahane instead.
“That's a bad one. Can we cut... can we make this a split screen and shift the camera to the other guy because he is a much more pleasant person to talk to, and he has got a much more pleasant face as well. I just wonder, 'superb, superb, superb,' Murali Kartik's voice, looking at himself in the mirror,” Manjrekar replied.
Kartik, however, quickly hit back at Manjrekar's remark.
“I don't look at myself in the mirror. That's you. That's only you.”
With the exchange seemingly getting more personal, Manjrekar appeared to realise that the conversation could cross a line and attempted to diffuse the situation. He also joked that their on-air spat would provide plenty of material for social media users.
“There is an incentive to look in the mirror. For you, I can understand it's not very motivating. Anyway, we're both going to cross lines here, and social media will have a field day,” said Manjrekar.
