After the early dismissals of Ajinkya Rahane and Hanuma Vihari in India’s first innings of the third Test at the Sydney Cricket Ground, all eyes were on the combination of Cheteshwar Pujara and Rishabh Pant. Pujara’s patience and Pant’s positive brand of cricket were supposed to lead India to a respectable total while chasing Australia’s 337.
But two consecutive overs by the Australian fats bowlers, Josh Hazlewood and Pat Cummins threw that plan out of the window for the visitors, as they managed to get the wickets of Pant And Pujara in quick succession. The 88th over by Hazlewood saw a disoriented Pant giving away a simple but quick catch to David Warner at first slip who grabbed the catch quite comfortably to send back the 23-year-old to the pavilion.
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Scoring 36 off 67 deliveries, Rishabh Pant was having steady innings and was providing the much-needed pace to his team’s performance but before getting dismissed he suffered a tough blow on his elbow which completely threw him off his game.
Pant is in trouble!
A Pat Cummins rocket has struck him hard on the elbow 😨😨
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A failed attempt to pull Cummins’ delivery in the 85th over led to the ball smacking on the left elbow of Pant as he instantly dropped to the floor in pain and discomfort. The injury caused a significant delay in the game as the Indian physio decided to thoroughly assess the batsman’s condition. Once the game resumed, Pant had tightly wrapped medical tape around his forearm and the analysts knew that the end was near for him on the pitch.
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Surely enough, it took no more than a couple of overs for him to get perished. Eventually, the Indian team got bundled out for 244 and the recent reports suggest that Rishabh Pant was taken to the hospital for further scans and Wriddhiman Saha will be performing the wicket-keeping duties in the second innings.
Some overzealous fans refused to empathize with the youngster and had a lot to say after Pant’s cheap dismissal:
These batting cameos by Pant cannot justify his place in the team alongside his poor wicketkeeping skills. He needs more heft in his contributions, and I'm not referring to increasing the 25kg Mathew Wade sledged him about.
— Ashok Lalla (@ashoklalla) January 9, 2021
Ambrassing to see Saini vihari pant in Indian cricket
— binesh prasad (@binny427) January 9, 2021
Ashwin, Pant and Pujara… they are all unfit, wonder how they passed yo yo test
— Suveer Kakroo (@suveerkakroo) January 9, 2021
