Former Australian pacer Damien Fleming has criticized Rishabh Pant's reckless shot selection that led to his dismissal on Day 3 of the Boxing Day Test. Damien Fleming said that the Indian team management will probably be frustrated by Rishabh Pant's shot at such a critical time in the first innings.
Rishabh Pant and Ravindra Jadeja needed to form a strong partnership to stabilize the innings after a collapse towards the end of Day 2 in Melbourne. The pair started well on day three, but reckless shot selection led to his fall, giving Australia an opportunity to dominate.
Rishabh Pant dismissed the attempt to get a first by Scott Boland
The left-hander attempted an unorthodox shot off Scott Boland but was caught by Nathan Lyon at third man. Notably, Pant had attempted the same shot earlier and was hit in the body. He repeated the mistake despite the pitch being set for such a shot, drawing criticism from fans and pundits.
India were reduced to 191-6 in the 56th over after Pant's dismissal. Pant scored 28 runs off 37 balls and is yet to score more than 30 runs in any innings during the tour. Jadeja too perished quickly, leaving the team to rely on the all-round duo of Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar to prevent a follow-on.
He got away with the previous ball – Damien Fleming
Reflecting on Rishabh Pant's dismissal, Damien Fleming said that the Indian team management probably expected a more responsible approach from him. Fleming noted that Pant had already attempted the same risky shot earlier and narrowly escaped, only to be out on the next ball.
“It's crazy. I was just talking about the leaders of the Indian team having a big discussion this morning. I tell you what, he wouldn't have talked about the reckless battle like that. He got away with the previous ball. Nathan Lyon takes a room service catch,” Fleming said on Channel Seven during commentary (via The Sydney Morning Herald ).
Rishabh Pant struggled in the ongoing 2024-25 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, scoring just 124 runs in six innings. He managed to make his debut, but his tendency to play reckless shots often led to dismissals. Pant was dismissed by Australia skipper Pat Cummins three times in the series.
Nitish Kumar Reddy smashes Maiden Test Half century in first innings
Nitish Kumar Reddy celebrated his maiden Test half-century with the famous 'Pushpa' gesture. He reached the milestone in 81 balls. Coming in at number eight, Reddy started cautiously, focusing on settling down before playing his shots. He had scores of 41, 38, 42, 42 and 16 in the first three Tests.
Nitish and Washington Sundar played key roles in helping India avoid the follow-on. They added more than 100 runs for the eighth wicket before the tea break. Nitish became the second Indian batsman to score a first-innings half-century and will be aiming to turn his start into a maiden Test century.
Read also: Rishabh Pant ripped to shreds by Sunil Gavaskar; “Stupidity” exposed