Team India's vice captain Rishabh Pant was seen having a tense chat with umpire and throwing the ball in anger after the discussion on Day 3 of the first Test against England. Pant raised concerns with on-field umpire Chris Gaffaney regarding the condition of the ball on Day 3. Pant questioned the umpire about a potential ball change. However, the umpire dismissed Pant's complaint about the state of the ball, leading to visible frustration for the Indian wicketkeeper during the morning session.
Rishabh Pant throws ball in anger after tense chat with umpire
Despite the incident with the ball, India managed to secure an early breakthrough on Day 3. In the third over of the day's play, pacer Prasidh Krishna dismissed Ollie Pope. Krishna bowled a short and wide delivery outside the off-stump, and Pope attempted a cut shot but managed only to edge the ball. Rishabh Pant, positioned behind the stumps, took a clean catch to complete the dismissal.
Following Pope's dismissal, England's overnight batter Harry Brook and captain Ben Stokes formed a partnership that frustrated the Indian bowlers. The incident involving the ball occurred just before the final delivery of the 61st over. At this point, Rishabh Pant's frustration with the condition of the ball was quite evident.
After examining the ball using a gauge, the on-field umpire decided against replacing it. Visibly annoyed by this decision, Pant flicked the ball away in frustration. This reaction from the Indian wicketkeeper drew boos from the crowd in Leeds. Furthermore, Pant's display of dissent might attract the attention of the match referee, potentially leading to disciplinary action.
Early in the innings, Jasprit Bumrah was the first among the Indian bowlers to express his concerns regarding the state of the cricket ball. He observed that after approximately 60 overs, the ball had lost its ability to move effectively, exhibiting neither conventional swing nor reverse swing. Soon after, in the 61st over, following a boundary hit by Harry Brook off Mohammed Siraj's bowling, wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant also approached the umpire to discuss the condition of the ball.
Despite the challenges posed by the older, unresponsive ball, Mohammed Siraj managed to provide India with a crucial breakthrough in the 65th over, dismissing the England captain, Ben Stokes. Prior to this, Stokes and Harry Brook had been comfortably negotiating the bowling attack, particularly with Jasprit Bumrah not in action and the other Indian bowlers struggling to generate any significant movement with the ball. However, Siraj produced a moment of brilliance, managing to get the ball to deviate slightly while bowling from around the wicket. Stokes attempted a tentative shot towards the off-side but ended up edging the ball to Rishabh Pant, who completed the catch behind the stumps.
Visibly frustrated with his dismissal, Stokes reacted by tossing his bat into the air as he began his walk back to the pavilion after scoring 20 runs off 52 deliveries. His dismissal left the England side at 276 runs for the loss of 5 wickets in their first innings.
Earlier in the same innings, upon taking the catch of Ollie Pope, Rishabh Pant achieved a significant personal milestone by completing 150 catches in Test cricket. In doing so, he became only the third Indian wicketkeeper to reach this landmark, joining the ranks of legendary keepers like MS Dhoni, who holds the record with 256 catches, and Syed Kirmani, who recorded 160 catches. Pant reached this milestone in his 44th Test match and 86th innings. His tally now stands at 165 dismissals in Tests, which includes 15 stumpings.