Legendary Indian cricket team skipper Sunil Gavaskar said that he is very passionate about Indian cricket and explained the reason behind his brutal criticism of Rishabh Pant‘s dismissal during the ongoing fourth Test against Australia. Pant was dismissed by Scott Boland while trying to play a flick shot and that led to Gavaskar blasting the youngster and calling the shot “stupid”. He went on to say that Pant should not even bother to go inside the Indian dressing room. On Sunday, Gavaskar opened up about his comments and said that “Test cricket is not easy”.
“Honestly, this game has made me. Indian cricket has made me. So when I see somebody as talented as Rishabh Pant play that shot ….and I had no problems with the first shot he played. The reason why I got upset was the ego took over for the next ball. I’ve just been hit in the midriff attempting a similar shot. I’m gonna show the bowler who’s the boss. Test cricket is not easy,” said Gavaskar.
“When he got out and got out at the other end …and I was always saying that they have got two fielders there in the deep. And this is a big ground it’s not easy to hit the sixes. You’ve got the fielders in the catching position. Deep square leg and deep fine leg. But when he got caught at third man with the edge,” he added.
Gavaskar also said that he knows that Pant is capable of hitting brilliant orthodox shots and he should show more patience and maturity while handling such tough situations.
“I’ve seen him play some fabulous innings, Rishabh Pant. But here in Australia, I get the impression he thinks that’s the only way he’s going to score runs here. He’s stepping down the pitch and lofting the ball and getting a boundary,” said Gavaskar.
“But that’s not always the way he scored runs in the past. He has, of course, played those shots, and those have been outrageously good. But it looks like he’s doing that … I’ve seen him play the cover drive along the ground very well. The square cut, the pull shot he plays so well, the flick off the pads. Everything he’s got,” he added.
“Yes, if he had connected and it had gone for a 6, I would’ve applauded the shot as well. But there you are, you get out, and it’s a fine line with the bat between being carefree and careless. And I thought he crossed that line,” he concluded.
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