Updated August 4th, 2019 at 10:48 IST
India vs West Indies: Rishabh Pant departs for a golden duck, netizens say 'perfect tribute for West Indies' innings'
Even as the first game of India's tour of West Indies turned out to be a low-scoring one, an ebbing issue came back to haunt the Men in Blue yet again. West Indies had clearly struggled with the bat and had managed to set just a 96-run target in their 20 overs. However, the pitch was unforgiving to the batsman, who found it very tough to smack the ball around amid the constant fall of wickets.
Advertisement
Even as the first game of India's tour of West Indies turned out to be a low-scoring one, an ebbing issue came back to haunt the Men in Blue yet again. West Indies had clearly struggled with the bat and had managed to set just a 96-run target in their 20 overs. However, the pitch was unforgiving to the batsman, who found it very tough to smack the ball around amid the constant fall of wickets.
Number four woes return to haunt India
As for India, they started off in a steady fashion after Shikhar Dhawan was dismissed at the start of the chase. However, the collapse of the Indian batting order was inevitable, considering the conditions. Yet, the middle-order once again failed to anchor the innings for the team. Young Rishabh Pant was sent in to bat at number four, was sent packing for a golden duck by spinner Sunil Narine. The number four woes for India has thus remained unsolved despite trying various options so far.
With veteran wicketkeeper MS Dhoni recusing himself from the ongoing series to serve the Indian Armed Forces as a part of the 106th Battalion of the Territorial Army, Rishabh Pant has donned the gloves and has been pronounced as India's first-choice wicketkeeper throughout the series. This instantly meant that the youngster has an immense responsibility that lists on his shoulder as he was filling in the shoes of MS Dhoni.
The youngster's failure to get off the mark, despite playing for India at the World Cup although at a different position, rekindled the middle-order debate once again. The low-scoring game saw India include youngsters like Manish Pandey and Krunal Pandya who could have been potential options for the number four position.
Tough wicket troubled the batsman, says Virat Kohli
Kohli conceded that his side would have loved to chase down the target in a better way but said that the wicket made it difficult.
"Our bowling and fielding were right up there but the pitch wasn't great. With the rain around, you could not do much. They did well to start the game on time.
"The bowlers were on top throughout, variations were superb. We would have liked to chase it four down, but we wanted to take risks and take the scoreboard moving. As the ball got older, strike rotation became key," the Indian captain said.
Netizens slam Rishabh Pant for lack of patience
Netizens lashed out at the youngster for throwing away his wicket once again, after a similar incident at the semifinals of the World Cup against New Zealand. Angry netizens slammed Pant for taking too many chances for learning the game and building patience. Read some of the responses here:
Advertisement
Published August 4th, 2019 at 09:21 IST
Your Voice. Now Direct.
Send us your views, we’ll publish them. This section is moderated.