IPL 2026: Travis Head’s wife receives offensive messages following Kohli face-off

Australian cricketer Travis Head's wife, Jessica, has shared information on the abusive messages she has received on social media following the heated altercation between Head and Virat Kohli during the Sunrisers Hyderabad vs. Royal Challengers Bengaluru match in Hyderabad on Friday, May 22. 

Following a furious face-off between Head and Kohli throughout the game, Kohli declined to shake hands with the Australian batter when the game was over. Following the event, Jessica's Instagram profile has been inundated with hateful and abusive messages from portions of the Virat Kohli and RCB fan base. 

“It feels like a repeat of the abuse that happened after the World Cup. I woke up to my socials blasting. We are fine, but they are attacking my friends and family,” she told Australian media outlet The Advertiser. 

This is not the first time that Head and his wife Jessica have had to face hate speech on social media. Following both the World Test Championship final and the ODI World Cup final played in 2023, Indian fans subjected Travis Head and his wife to abusive language and derogatory comments on social media. Subsequently, a similar incident occurred during the 2024 BGT series as well. In all three of these matches, Travis Head played a crucial role in Australia’s victories — something many Indian fans found hard to accept, leading to offensive comments on social media.

“I think across all sports at the moment there’s an important conversation around mental health, perspective and the way we speak to one another. Passion will always be part of sport, but so is remembering there are real people and families behind the game. Hopefully, this encourages more kindness and support for one another," Jessica added. 

The incident happened when Head and Kohli exchanged words in the middle overs during a wide review during RCB's chase. Head kept repeatedly urging Kohli to adopt a more aggressive batting approach. In response, Kohli told Head to come on to bowl, and even went so far as to mention the fact that he had played as an 'Impact Player' throughout the entire season.

Subsequently, after Virat Kohli was dismissed, Head remarked to him that he had been dismissed even before facing his bowling; this further escalated tensions between the two, leading Kohli to decide against shaking hands with Travis Head after the match.

RCB and SRH, both teams have qualified for the IPL 2026 playoffs. Both teams finished the league stage with 18 points. However, with superior NRR, RCB finished top of the table, while SRH finished No.3. RCB will now face Gujarat Titans on May 26 at Dharamshala in Qualifier 1, while SRH will take on RR in the eliminator on May 27 at Mullanpur.