Rishabh Pant is copping backlash around the cricket world after his shocking dismissal sparked an Indian collapse and helped Australia win the fourth Test at the MCG. India didn’t lose a wicket in the middle session on Monday and were 3-121 just after tea.
The match appeared to be meandering towards a draw before Pant had a brain explosion and holed out to Mitch Marsh off the bowling of Travis Head. Aussie captain Pat Cummins had the field back and appeared to be hoping Pant wouldn’t be able to resist the urge to hit Head for six.
And on the first occasion he went for a big shot he hit it straight down the throat of Marsh at deep long-on. It sparked a collapse of 3-9 and India eventually lost their last seven wickets for just 34 runs – handing Australia a 2-1 lead in the series with one Test to play.
Cricket fans and commentators were gobsmacked by Pant’s dismissal at a time when he just needed to keep his head. With India holding the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, a draw at the MCG would have been perfect for the tourists.
Instead they head to Sydney needing a win, and Pant’s dismissal was labelled “disgraceful” and “horrendous” on social media. It was the second time in the Test that the explosive keeper was dismissed while playing a big shot, and he copped plenty of criticism in the first innings too.
A match which looked mostly likely a draw at tea is now looking like a win for Australia. Awful shots from Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli & Rishabh Pant.
— Vipul Ghatol 🇮🇳 (@Vipul_Espeaks) December 30, 2024
Rohit Sharma critical of Rishabh Pant after dismissal
India captain Rohit Sharma said in his press conference: “Obviously we’ve lost the game, everybody is disappointed about how things panned out … But again look, Rishabh Pant obviously he needs to understand what is required from himself.
“More than anyone of us telling him, it’s about him understanding and figuring out what’s the right way to go about it. In the past, he has given us lot of success doing what he does. As a captain, there’s a kind of mixed reaction to that.
“Sometimes you want to back that thought of him playing the way he plays, sometimes when things don’t look good, it frustrates everyone. That is what it is, that’s the reality. It’s the success and failure – need to be balanced about it.”
Sharma added: “As captain it’s hard to have a conversation when it has given him a lot of success as well. But it’s about him figuring out what is the right way to do things, it’s about situations as well. Certain situations of the game, if there’s a risk percentage, do you want to take that risk? Do you want to let the opposition come back into the game? Those are the things he need to figure out himself.
“I’ve known Rishabh for a long time, understand his cricket as well … In terms of conversations, no way I can say I’ve not had a chat with him or he doesn’t understand what the term expects. He understands that. But things that he does gives him results as well, just the fine line between telling him not to do those things or telling him to do those things.”
Australia take 2-1 in Test series against India
Cummins (3-28), Scott Boland (3-39) and Nathan Lyon (2-39) all contributed with the ball in the final session to get Australia home. The Aussies will regain the Border-Gavaskar trophy for the first time since 2014-15 if they win, or draw, the series decider at the SCG, starting on Friday. Victory for India and a series drawn 2-2 would allow the tourists to retain the trophy.
