David Lloyd questions Rishabh Pant's injury during the 4th Test against England, suggesting he 'milked' it. Despite a fractured toe, Pant batted bravely, prompting applause and controversy.
Former England cricketer turned commentator David Lloyd made a shocking comment on Team India vice-captain Rishabh Pant’s fractured toe amid the ongoing fourth Test of the five-match series against England at Old Trafford in Manchester.
Rishabh Pant sustained a right foot injury off Chris Woakes’s yorker delivery on Day 1 of the Manchester Test and was writhing in pain. Pant called for immediate medical attention, but was stretchered off the field in a buggy ambulance as he was unable to walk or stand, retiring hurt on 37*. The 27-year-old was taken to the hospital for scans, which reportedly revealed a fractured toe.
Despite a right foot injury, Rishabh Pant still walked out to bat to a standing ovation from the Old Trafford crowd and resumed his innings at 37. He played a valiant innings of 54 off 75 balls, including three fours and two sixes, before Jofra Archer bowled him out.
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‘He has milking that injury, should be timed’
As the cricketing world applauded the bravery and grit of Rishabh Pant to bat despite a fractured toe, former England cricketer David Lloyd was not convinced by the southpaw’s injury.
Speaking on talkSPORT Cricket, Lloyd acknowledged Pant’s heroics to continue his batting despite injury, but he believes that the Indian vice-captain ‘milked the injury’ and could not have been bad. He further added that the umpire should have timed out Rishabh Pant for taking extra time to limp out from the dressing room.
“Pant looked in pain; pretty heroic of him to come out, though,” Lloyd said.
“Northerners, whether they are tough enough, but I was in that legends lounge today, and the consensus was ‘He has milking that injury. It can’t be that bad. He’s milked it, coming down those steps, and one or two said, ‘He should be timed out,'" he added.
It was not the first time Rishabh Pant showed his valour despite being injured. In the third Test of the series at Lord’s, Pant sustained an injury on his left index finger during wicketkeeping duties on Day 1. Though he was sidelined from keeping the wickets, Pant walked out to bat with an injury.
In the first innings, Rishabh Pant played a gritty knock of 74 off 112 balls to help Team India level England’s first innings total of 387. However, in the second innings, he fell for seven runs to Jofra Archer in India’s 193-run chase.
Lloyd demands substitutions for injured players
Since Rishabh Pant cannot take up wicketkeeping duties due to injury, Dhruv Jurel has been tasked to keep the wickets as a substitute. However, Jurel cannot bat in Pant’s absence as the International Cricket Council (ICC) does not allow substitutes to bat unless it is a case of concussion.
However, David Lloyd demanded a change in the substitution rule for external injuries, with like-for-like replacement.
“I probably am against runners, but I am pro substitutes for an external injury," Lloyd said.
“It opens up a can of worms, it really does. But if it is an external injury, a break and medically he isn’t going to be fit for six weeks, you could have a like-for-like substitute. So that’s something else that you’ve got to consider. Not like replace a batter with a spinner though," he added.
