On the fourth day of the fourth Test match between India and England in Manchester, things looked very bad for India for some time. England scored 669 runs in their first innings and took a big lead of 311 runs over India’s 358.
In the second innings, India had a terrible start. In the very first over, Chris Woakes took two wickets – Yashasvi Jaiswal and Sai Sudharsan. It looked like India would lose all wickets on the same day. But KL Rahul and Shubman Gill batted strongly and saved the team for now.
The match is not finished yet. On the fifth and last day, 90 overs will be played. Rahul and Gill are still batting, but other batsmen will also need to play well. Now the question is – will Rishabh Pant come to bat on the last day?
On the first day, Pant got hit on his foot by a ball from Chris Woakes. Reports say he has a fracture in his foot. Still, on the second day, he came to bat and scored a half-century. Because of his injury, he has not done wicketkeeping in this match. India’s batting coach Sitanshu Kotak has now given an update about him.
Kotak said that Rishabh Pant will be ready to bat on the fifth day if needed. After the fourth day’s play, Kotak said in a press conference: “I think he will bat tomorrow.”
He also said that on the last day, batsmen need to play carefully. He explained: “Do not plan too much in advance. Play every ball on its merit. Avoid taking useless risks. If you are ready and avoid mistakes, then you will only get out if the ball behaves badly or you get a very good ball. These players have the skill to do it. They play IPL and international cricket, so they know how to handle pressure. In cricket, your mind is very important. You need to think according to the situation. It is more about the mind than just skill.”