Rishabh Pant gave India a brief injury scare ahead of next week’s first Test against South Africa in Kolkata by having to retire hurt while batting for India A against South Africa A at the BCCI Center of Excellence in Bengaluru.
During the first session of day three, Pant was hit three times – on his body and helmet – by fast bowler Tshepo Muriki, forcing him to retire hurt by 17 off 22 balls in the 34th over of India A’s second innings.
Pant had come out to bat at number five on day three after overnight batsman KL Rahul was bowled for 27 – adding just one more to his overnight score – by a stimulator off Okuhle Cele. It didn’t take Pant long to get going, his first three shots being 4, 4 and 6 – all off Sealy – but a series of short shots left him wincing in pain.
While Pant was keen to continue batting, he had to be taken off by India coach A Hrishikesh Kanitkar and his physios as a precautionary measure. He was in agony every time the ball hit his racket, and his range of motion was limited due to stress on his elbow after an injury there.
The first blow Pant suffered was on the helmet when he attempted a reverse shot from Muriqui, who bowled a short ball around the stumps. The girl was off balance at the point of impact and immediately fell to the ground, forcing a physical therapist to perform a mandatory concussion test. Once cleared, he pulled back from his stance once to take off his helmet and collect himself before striking.
The second strike had Pant groaning as the ball hit his right elbow as he prepared to play a short-arm drive. This time, the physical therapist applied some pain reliever spray and taped the elbow. The third blow to the abdomen from the delivery that broke the seam eventually forced the management to remove Pant from the field.
After proving his athleticism and fitness with a 90 in the second innings of the four-day first match won by India A last week, Pant had a more challenging time in the second match. In the first innings, he was hit on the glove by a short ball from Muriqui and was caught at slip for 24 minutes.
In the second match, Pant kept a careful tally of the number of days he had been out – 98 – while recovering from a broken toe after being hit by Chris Woakes during the India-England fourth Test in Manchester in July. He spent two months in rehabilitation at the Center of Excellence after surgery, and resumed training in early September before playing for India A to get some time off before the South Africa Tests. In his absence, Dhruv Jurel kept wicket during the two home Tests against the West Indies as well as the fifth Test at The Oval, which India won to level the five-Test series by a score of 2-2.
India will play two Tests against South Africa from November 14 in Kolkata and then from November 22 in Guwahati, the city that will host Test cricket for the first time. India currently stands third in the World Test Championship table with a percentage of 61.90%. While South Africa ranks fifth with 50%.
