Rishabh Pant was at the receiving end of viral rant by Sunil Gavaskar after the wicket threw his wicket on Day 3 of the 4th Test leaving India in a precarious situation. Pant did start well and got a few boundaries but then the urge to play the falling lap pull over long-leg brought about his dismissal. “Stupid! Stupid! Stupid! You’ve got two fielder there and you still go for that. You’ve missed the previous shot and look where you’ve been caught. You’ve caught at deep third man. That is throwing away your wicket. Not in the situation that India was. You have to understand the situation as well. You cannot say that is your natural game. I am sorry that is not your natural game. That is a stupid shot. That is letting your team down badly. He should not be going in that (Indian) dressing room, he should be going into the other dressing room,” Gavaskar said on ABC Sport.
But former India coach Ravi Shastri defended Pant.
“It’s not in every innings he has attempted that shot. Let’s look at the way he was dismissed in each innings, he got 2-3 really good deliveries. He got a really good delivery that left off the length in Adelaide, there was no way he played an attacking shot,” Shastri told Star Sports.
“He got another one that left him, he was caught behind. Second innings in Adelaide, secodn ball of the day, he gets a good one from Starc and he nicks it. So, let’s calm down here, guys. It’s not every time he’s throwing it away. He got some good balls as well.”
Shastri, however, had a word of advice for Pant.
“He had done the hard work. The field had spread out. That’s one aspect of his batting that has to change with time to come. He’s built up a reputation for himself, he comes to field, he smashes a boundary and the field spreads. That’s the time when maturity should come in, knock the ball around and take singles,” said Shastri.
“That was a high-risk shot. There was no doubt about that. The field was set, two fielders on the boundary pretty fine, a fly slip and a fine leg as well. Scott Boland was looking to ball up. It didn’t come off the face of the blade, Rishabh backs himself to get the face of the blade.
“If he had got that, it would’ve been a six. He was looking to clear the field, that’s his instinct and that’s the way he plays. You must remember that there are 1-2 players who take the game away.”
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