Digital Desk: During a visit to the renowned Melbourne Cricket Ground on Friday, External Affairs Minister S Jaishankar presented his Australian counterpart Marise Payne with a cricket bat signed by Indian cricketer Virat Kohli.
In a "fitting end to a busy day," Jaishankar and Payne, as well as US Secretary of State Antony Blinken and Japanese Foreign Minister Yoshimasa Hayashi, paid a visit to Australia's largest and most famous sporting stadium.
Payne hosted the Quadrennial Meeting of Foreign Ministers.
"Quad FMs visit the @MCG. Presented @MarisePayne with a bat signed by @imVkohli," Jaishankar, who is visiting Australia for the first time as External Affairs Minister, posted a photo on Twitter.
"A message of fair play and rules of the game," Jaishankar remarked, clearly addressing China, which is exercising its muscles in the Indo-Pacific area.
Kohli, India's batting mainstay across formats, is a 33-year-old star whose national captaincy term recently ended after he renounced Test leadership. With 40 victories in 68 games, he is India's most successful Test captain.
The MCG, first opened in 1853, less than 20 years after Melbourne's establishment, has been the home of Australian football since 1859 and the birthplace of Test cricket in 1877 and one-day international cricket in 1971.
The stadium seats over a million people and is Australia's largest sporting venue. The MCG is located in Yarra Park, about a 10-minute walk from Melbourne's downtown core.
Jaishankar is in Australia at the invitation of Payne, his Australian counterpart.
He began his official stay in Australia with a meeting with Australia's Defence Minister, Peter Dutton.
"Started the day with meeting Defence Minister @PeterDutton_MP. We followed up on the 2+2 discussions last year," Jaishankar tweeted earlier in the day.
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