Gargi Raut at Old Trafford
Rishabh Pant, India’s Test vice-captain, has been one of the best batters in the series. Time and again, when India have been in trouble, Pant has shouldered the responsibility of steadying the ship for the team. Similar was the situation when Pant walked in post-lunch, with both Indian openers, Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul, and the skipper Shubman Gill losing their wickets in quick succession.
Pant was batting with a strike-rate of 77.08, hitting his anxiety inducing audacious shots, attempting sweeps and slogs against the English bowlers and finding the boundary time and time again. He scored a quick-fire 37 off 48 balls, but his innings came to an unfortunate end as he tried another audacious reverse-sweep shot off Chris Woakes. The delivery, which took the inside edge, landed on his right metatarsal.
Pant was in real pain as he hobbled away from the crease, slowly taking off one piece of equipment after the other. He tried walking off the pain, but something was clearly not right. As the physio rushed in, Pant continued pacing back and forth with a grimace on his face. Soon, the batter was on the ground and the physio took off his boot to reveal a bloodied and swollen foot.
Sprawled on the ground, it was clear that Pant did not want to leave the field. But even a touch of the cotton gauze caused him to wince in pain. Soon, the ambulance was called on to the field and Pant had to be wheeled off the field. Even getting him on the caddy was a task as Pant hobbled and grimaced in pain.
Whether or not this injury spells the end of Pant’s campaign in the five-match Test series remains to be seen. But judging by his visible agony, the swelling and the bloodied foot, combined with Pant’s well-known pain tolerance, it appears to be more than just a routine knock.
For someone who has time and again battled adversity with grit, this setback could not have come at a worse time. In the last Test, it was a bruised index finger for the wicketkeeper-batter, and this time around it’s a bloodied foot. Pant can’t seem to catch a break. If he is ruled out of the series, will India be able to fight without one of their most fearless warriors at the crease?
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