Rishabh had played sensibly in the first and second sessions of the fourth test at Chennai. His presence in middle at tea was a pleasing sign for Indians. Going into the last session England bowlers were expectedly going to tire and there lied a chance for Rishabh Pant to hit the top gear. The person supporting him at the other end was Washington Sundar who is no mug with the bat and can easily be a top 5 batter in the test team. Both of them started to take the attack to English bowlers and English bowlers were clueless after a point. Stokes who was spot on in the first two sessions was taken to cleaners. Pant’s audacity of striking big at will forced Root to set defensive fields.
Bowlers were tiring out and Pant was in his elements cover drive, pull, swat, hoick he played every shot that he is capable of and with every boundary, the England team was feeling the heat and shoulders were dropping down. Pant’s audacious nature is known to all but with it comes great danger as well. Playing on 89 and facing Anderson Pant reverse scoop a 2 over the old ball over the slip cordon for a boundary. A bowler who has 900 International wickets and has bowled superbly till that point, the reverse scoop was heart-breaking or rather demoralizing for the bowler. Whenever execution matches audacity such stunts are given a huge round of applause and if the execution is missing then one has to be ready to face the flak. Looking at Pant’s way it looks never ever will he get bogged down by criticism and will play his own fearless brand of cricket. As fans, we should be ready for his failure at the wrong time in some matches because when it’s his day his dressing room believes, fans believe that even impossible is achievable.
