Rishabh Pant's finger injury casts doubt on his keeping role in the fourth Test against England. While the management confirms he'll play as a batsman, his keeping duties remain uncertain, with KL Rahul and Dhruv Jurel as potential replacements.
Team India management is currently grappling with an injury concern surrounding vice-captain Rishabh Pant, whose availability for the fourth Test against England at Old Trafford in Manchester remains uncertain at present.
Rishabh Pant sustained an injury on his left index finger during his wicketkeeping duties on Day 1 of the Lord’s Test and was on the sidelines from keeping the wickets, with Dhruv Jurel stepping in as substitute keeper. However, the southpaw walked in to bat in both innings of the fourth Test, despite pain in his finger. In the first innings, Pant played a gritty knock of 74 off 112 balls to help the visitors level England’s first innings total.
However, during India’s 193-run chase, Rishabh Pant was not at his best, looked weak and unfit due to a finger injury, as he was dismissed for seven runs by Jofra Archer. Eventually, the visitors were bundled out for 170, heartbreakingly falling 23 runs short of achieving the target, despite strong resistance from Ravindra Jadeja, who scored a valiant unbeaten innings of 61 off 181 balls.
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Rishabh Pant’s injury update
Amid concerns over Rishabh Pant’s injury and uncertainty over his participation in the Manchester Test, India Assistant Coach Ryan ten Doeschate provided a huge update on the southpaw’s fitness ahead of the fourth Test.
Speaking to the reporters on the sidelines of Team India’s practice session at Beckenham, Ryan stated that the management is not thinking of keeping Rishabh Pant from the Test irrespective of his injury. He further added that keeping wickets is the final part of the southpaw’s recovery as Pant the batter, is important for Team India.
“I don't think you're gonna keep Rishabh out of the Test no matter what. He batted with quite a lot of pain in the 3rd Test, and it's only going to get easier on his finger,” India Assistant Coach said on Thursday.
“Keeping is the last part of the process. We need to make sure that he can keep — we don't want to go through that again where we have to replace the keeper halfway through an innings,” he added.
Rishabh Pant is in an incredible form, scoring 425 runs, including two centuries and as many fifties, at an average of 70.83 in six innings.
Given his form, the Team India management would ensure Rishabh Pant features in the Manchester Test, even if it means playing purely as a batter, while handing wicketkeeping duties to KL Rahul or Dhruv Jurel.
Who will keep wickets in Rishabh Pant’s absence?
Rishabh Pant’s availability as a wicketkeeper remains uncertain at the moment, as he has yet to completely recover from a finger injury. As the update provided by Ryan ten Doeschate suggests, the team management is prioritising Pant’s role as a batter.
In case Pant is unavailable to keep the wickets in the Manchester Test, India have two options - KL Rahul and Dhruv Jurel - to take up wicketkeeping duties. Rahul has prior experience of donning the gloves when Rishabh Pant was on the sidelines for 15 months due to injuries sustained from a fatal car crash in December 2022.
However, KL Rahul, being an opener in the ongoing Test series against England, the Team India management is unlikely to burden him with wicketkeeping duties, making Dhruv Jurel the probable choice to keep the wickets if Rishabh Pant is deemed unfit.
Dhruv Jurel played as a wicketkeeper-batter in Rishabh Pant’s absence in his maiden Test series against England at home last year.
