IND vs SA | Pretty certain that Rahul Dravid would have given a hearing to Rishabh Pant , says Sunil Gavaskar
Sunil Gavaskar has said that India head coach Rahul Dravid would have given a hearing to Rishabh Pant after the latter threw away his wicket while trying to play an attacking shot against Kagiso Rabada. Pant was dismissed for a three-ball duck in the second innings of the Johannesburg Test.
India are leading the three-match Test series against South Africa by 1-0 and will look forward to ensuring their maiden Test series victory in the rainbow nation. India was bundled out for a total of 266 runs in their second innings On Day 3 in Johannesburg Test, setting a target of 240 runs for the opposition to chase.
Ajinkya Rahane and Cheteshwar Pujara, who have been facing a lot of criticism in the past for not scoring runs for Team India, notched up half-centuries and played a crucial role for their side. However, Rishabh Pant, who is having a drought for runs in his recent outings in Test cricket was dismissed for a three-ball duck while trying to attack a short-pitched delivery bowled by Kagiso Rabada.
Meanwhile, several former cricketers have criticized Pant for his poor dismissal in recent Test matches. Sunil Gavaskar is the newest to join the bandwagon, and the former Indian cricketer has stated that the team head coach, Rahul Dravid would have given a hearing to Pant for the manner in which he was dismissed in the second innings of the Johannesburg Test.
"This is something we saw against England, at the start of the series. When England came to India, he was jumping down the pitch and trying to hit James Anderson… he did that so well. But after that he seems to think that is the only way to play. That is not the way to play and I am pretty certain that in the change room, Rahul Dravid would have given him a hearing, or as they say in cricket, Dravid must have given him a 'bamboo'," Gavaskar said on Star Sports.
Pant was dismissed on a three-ball duck and his batting form has been a cause of concern for Team India. Pant displayed a brilliant batting performance in Australia last year and played a vital role in helping India to script a historical series win. Gavaskar opined that Pant applied himself in Australia but his tendency to play big shots is making his stay at the crease very short.
"It's a valid question. This is something one can understand if Rishabh Pant had been batting on 30 and 40. This is something he had not done in Australia. There he applied himself, recognised that there will be hard times at the beginning when you come in to bat and then battling through the hard times, he got set and got to know how the pitch is. And then he played the big shots. That’s what he did in Australia," he added.
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