Ravi Shastri's Big Warning To India: 'Rishabh Pant Shouldn't Play 4th Test If...'
Former India coach Ravi Shastri advised against playing Rishabh Pant in the fourth Test if he's unable to keep wickets due to injury. Dhruv Jurel could replace him.
Former India head coach Ravi Shastri has advised India against playing Rishabh Pant in the fourth Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy at Manchester if he can't keep wickets. Shastri believes that if India include him in the 11 as a specialist batter, like assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate seemed to suggest in a recent press conference, he'll risk further injury by being in the outfield.
Pant injured the tip of his left index finger while keeping wickets on the first day of the third Test at Lord's. Dhruv Jurel replaced him behind the sticks for the rest of the Test. Though Pant batted and hit 74 and 9 in the two innings, he looked in a bit of pain throughout. India are trailing 2-1 in the five-Test series and Manchester will have everything on the line, which means any decision to rest someone will have to be well-thought out.
'I don't think he should go in as a specialist batter if he can't keep because he will have to field," Shastri said on the ICC review podcast. 'If he fields, that will be worse. With the gloves at least there is some protection. Without gloves, if he gets something that stings in there, then it won't be very good. It'll only worsen the injury," he added.
'You've got to see if it is a break. If it is a break or a fracture, then he rather rests it and comes fully fit at The Oval. He won't get a substitute now. Now they'll know that he has been injured. When you pick the team for the next Test, he'll have to keep and he'll have to bat. He can't do one of the two. It's if it is fully fit. If it is not a crack, I think he'll play," Shastri added.
Jurel could be a straightforward replacement for Pant if the latter isn't fit to bat. However, if he is, and India choose to pick him as a specialist batter, they can bring in Jurel for the out-of-form Karun Nair.
Jurel has played four Tests for the country, scoring 202 runs at an average of 40.40.
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