IND vs ENG 4th Test: Will Rishabh Pant Bat On Day 5 Despite Toe Fracture?
India’s hopes of salvaging a draw in the final Test at Old Trafford have received a boost with confirmation that injured wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant will bat on Day 5, despite suffering a toe fracture earlier in the match. Pant sustained the injury in the first innings while attempting a reverse sweep off Chris Woakes.
Pant had made a valuable 54 off 75 deliveries in the first innings, laced with three boundaries and two sixes. However, his movement remains restricted due to the injury.
Rishabh Pant to bat on Day 5
Batting coach Sitanshu Kotak confirmed Pant’s availability in the post-Day 4 press conference. He said,“Yes, Rishabh will bat tomorrow,”. Though Pant was unable to continue keeping duties with youngster Dhruv Jurel taking over behind the stumps, the 26-year-old walked out to bat limping on Day 2, showcasing his trademark grit.
England on top against India
After England piled on a massive first-innings total of 669, taking a 311-run lead, India faced early trouble in their second innings. Chris Woakes struck twice in the very first over, removing openers Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudharsan for ducks. But KL Rahul and captain Shubman Gill steadied the innings with a crucial partnership.
Kotak lauded both batters for showing composure under pressure. He said, “When you lose early wickets, it’s easy to panic. But even at lunch, they were calm. They backed themselves to play out the tough phase. KL’s defensive technique against the new ball was outstanding. And Gill, after a few streaky moments, started trusting his game and played to his strengths,”.
At stumps on Day 4, India were 174/2, still trailing by 137 runs, with Rahul unbeaten on 87 and Gill standing tall on 78. Looking ahead to the final day, India must bat through at least two sessions to secure a draw and avoid a series defeat.
With Pant expected to return to the crease and a resilient partnership already in place, India will look to dig deep on Day 5 in a bid to escape with a draw in Manchester.
On Day 2 of the Test, Kamboj had a difficult start to his Test career, but he ended it by taking his first wicket by removing a composed Ben Duckett.
Given that Mohammed Siraj and Jasprit Bumrah, the pace duo, were not playing at their best, Kamboj had a significant role to play. Nevertheless, he finished the day with somber numbers of 1/89 off his 18 overs.
Kamboj had trouble getting any rhythm with the second new ball the next day and his deliveries were consistently clocked in the 120 kmph range. This prompted Ashwin to raise concerns about the pacer’s speed.
“I praised Anshul Kamboj yesterday, but I have to say that his bowling speeds were so low, I was quite surprised. I honestly hope he is okay, because he was bowling faster than this in the IPL,” Ashwin said while speaking on his YouTube channel. “He looked like he was struggling a touch. All said and done, the only solution to this (Bowling injuries and inefficiency) is to be able to create a bigger pool of bowlers,” Ashwin added.
india vs england: how many overs left today on day 5
India vs England: India are battling hard against England with Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar hitting unbeaten fifties to guide India to 322/4 at tea on the fifth and final day of the fourth Test on Sunday.
Jadeja and Washington were batting on 53 and 57 respectively at the break, having added 100 runs for the fifth wicket as the visitors wiped off England’s massive 311-run deficit. The duo stitched a 100-run partnership, coming off 184 balls, but it was not about the balls; it’s about the time and the runs, and that helped put in an impressive session for India, 98 for no loss. Both the southpaws put up a steely performance, showing great character and absorbing all the pressure as they went about their job in an absolutely single-minded manner.
England skipper Ben Stokes has been the difference maker for his side in the Test series against India and he did it once again on day 5 of the 4th match on Sunday when he broke the resistance of the visitors, sending back a well-set KL Rahul for 90 runs. The feat was even more impressive with Stokes bowling with some sort of discomfort in the match.His former teammate Stuart Broad lauded the England captain, explaining how the allrounder snared Rahul and turned the match around in favour of the hosts.
“I don’t think India are playing Ben Stokes the man—they’re playing Ben Stokes the bowler, and right now, he’s bowling superbly. He’s not someone they need to change their mindset for, but the fact is, he’s England’s most effective bowler at the moment. Today, he generated both low and high bounce, which makes it extremely difficult for batters to settle,” Broad said on JioHotstar.
“Take KL Rahul’s dismissal for instance—there’s no way you could have played that ball. From that length, with it keeping low, it was virtually unplayable. He’s just in rhythm, bowling outstanding deliveries. And you rarely see a batter walk off for an LBW without even checking—but that’s exactly what happened. It speaks to how fair and convincing the decision was. Stokes has had an incredible impact on this game—five wickets for a hundred, and then a key wicket this morning. He’s one of those players who just rises to big moments, and today was another example,” he added.
Stokes, who took five wickets in India’s first innings but was not fit to bowl in the tourists’ first 63 overs of their second on Saturday, brought himself into the attack on Sunday morning with India resuming on 174-2.