Sunil Gavaskar said he enjoyed Rishabh Pant’s counter-attacking display against left-arm spinner Jack Leach on Day 3 of the series opener at Chepauk in Chennai.
Sunil Gavaskar seems to have enjoyed a little period of play in the second session of Day 3 in the first Test between India and England where Rishabh Pant came up with a counter-attacking fifty.
Sunil Gavaskar: It Was Fantastic To Watch Rishabh Pant Take On Jack Leach
The former legendary batsman lauded keeper Rishabh Pant for trying to put left-arm spinner, Jack Leach, off-rhythm by going after him. India were in a spot of bother when they had lost captain Virat Kohli (6) and vice-captain Ajinkya Rahane (1) in quick succession as off-spinner Dom Bess wreaked havoc, leaving the hosts at 73 for 4 in reply to England’s massive first innings total of 578.
Both Rishabh Pant and Cheteshwar Pujara got to their fifties before the Tea break as India managed to avoid any further hiccups before the break. Speaking during the break on Star Sports, Sunil Gavaskar said Rishabh Pant will become a lot more consistent if he understands the “thin line” between “being carefree and careless”.
“He (Pant) has always been an exhilarating player. He can be annoying in the sense we all want to see him carry on and bat because he gives so much enjoyment with the way he plays. What happens with Rishabh Pant is there is always that very thin line between being carefree and careless. Once he realizes what is that little line between being carefree and careless, he will be a lot more consistent,” Gavaskar said.
“It was fantastic to watch him take on Jack Leach because he didn’t want to settle down. It’s a partnership, he recognises he can be dangerous to the right hander. He is trying to throw him off by affecting his confidence.”
However, Rishabh Pant came up with a fearless, counter-attacking display, hitting spinner Jack Leach for as many as 4 sixes. He hit the left-arm spinner into the long-on and mid-wicket stands at the MA Chidambaram Stadium.
Jack Leach had a rough patch outside the left-handers off-stump to make use of but every time he landed there, Rishabh Pant was able to dance down the track and attack the spinner. He got to his fifty in just 41 balls as spinner Jack Leach had conceded 59 runs in his first spell of 6 overs.
Sunil Gavaskar: India Need A Hundred From Rishabh Pant And Cheteshwar Pujara (But They Were Dismissed After Scoring 91 And 73 Respectively)
Meanwhile, Sunil Gavaskar said India needs big scores from both Cheteshwar Pujara and Rishabh Pant if they are to get anywhere close to England’s first-innings total. India’s top-order was rattled by the brilliant of Jofra Archer and Dom Bess who picked up 2 wickets each before Tea on Day 3.
“India needs a big, big score from a batsman. They need a hundred from Rishabh Pant, Pujara. They need some fifties from Washington Sundar and R Ashwin so that India will be feeling a lot better,” Gavaskar added.
Cheteshwar Pujara(73) and Rishabh Pant(91) were dismissed by Dom Bess. India are 257/6 at stumps on 3rd day with Washington Sundar unbeaten on 33 and Ravichandran Ashwin unbeaten on 8. India still trails by 321 runs.