England all-rounder Liam Dawson feels that Rishabh Pant will not be able to feature in the rest of the fourth Test after the India wicketkeeper-batter had sustained an injury to his right foot on Day 1 of Manchester Test. While attempting to hit a reverse-sweep on a delivery from Chris Woakes, Pant ended up completely missing the ball which hit him hard on his right foot.
The 27-year-old looked to be in a lot of pain and eventually was forced to retire hurt for 37 runs as India suffered a major blow. Pant was soon taken to a nearby hospital for scans, reports of which are much-awaited. With there being a lot of question marks over Pant's participation for the remainder of the match, Dawson feels that the injury will keep the India star out of the rest of the game.
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“Hope he’s alright. Didn’t look great, that. Obviously, thoughts with him. He’s a big player for them. I don’t think we’ll see him again in this game,” Dawson told reporters in the post-day press-conference.
Atherton feels that Pant can even be ruled out of the series
Former England cricketer Michael Atherton also shared his views on Pant's injury, stating that the 27-year-old can even be ruled out of the remainder of the series as the injury looked quite serious. Notably, after getting hit hard on the foot, Pant wasn't even able to walk properly and was taken off the field on a golf cart.
"If he is out of the game...if he's out of the series, then that's a massive blow to India and puts the day in a different light. That 264 for four becomes 264 for five, and with that new ball due, there is a potential to knock India over reasonably swiftly tomorrow. But if he returns to bat, he could change the game. So there is an uncertainty which we don't know. But it looked like a quite serious injury, because you don't get carted off otherwise," Atherton said on Sky Sports.
Meanwhile, India capped off the first day of the fourth Test at Old Trafford on 264/4 with both Ravindra Jadeja and Shardul Thakur unbeaten on 19 runs. The Men in Blue looked to be in a strong position at one stage following fifties from Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudharsan. Pant had also formed a valiant partnership of over 50 runs with Sudharsan before he was forced to retire hurt. The injury to the wicketkeeper-batter saw the visitors end the day on a not so positive note and it remains to be seen how far the Indian team will be able to take their first-inning total on the second day of the match.