Whenever Rishabh Pant steps out to the crease with his bat, it’s easy to predict his batting style. While he may not have found success in T20Is and ODIs, he has achieved considerable success in Test cricket. However, before the start of the Test series on the Sri Lanka tour, Pant displayed a batting display never seen before. On the final day of the practice match against Sri Lanka Cricket XI, Pant surprised everyone by opting for defensive batting instead of attacking, resulting in his account opening on the 22nd ball.
On the final day of the practice match in Colombo, Team India began their second innings chasing a target of 207 runs. Yashasvi Jaiswal and captain Shubman Gill opened the innings and put on a century partnership. Jaiswal, who had failed in the first innings, scored a half-century this time and retired after scoring 61 runs. Rishabh Pant, who had also been dismissed for just 3 runs in the first innings, was then promoted to number three.
Pant showed the strength of his defense
This was Pant’s last chance to understand the Sri Lankan conditions and gain match practice. The manner in which he was dismissed in the first innings had raised questions, and so his batting style was under scrutiny. As soon as he began batting, onlookers were taken aback. Pant, who had been dismissed off the fifth ball of the previous innings while attempting a six, simply defended the spinners and didn’t attempt a single big shot.
It was natural to be surprised by this aspect of Pant’s batting. Even captain Gill was dismissed trying to hit a six in front of him. But on the other hand, Pant focused solely on keeping the ball away from his wicket. As a result, Pant remained scoreless for 21 consecutive balls, until on the 22nd ball, he smashed a six over the straight boundary against the off-spinner to score his first run. His shot was so powerful that the ball went out of the field and a new ball had to be called.
Even after this six, Pant continued to bat in the same style, focusing on defense. Although he occasionally hit sixes, he lasted 67 balls before being dismissed while attempting another big shot. Overall, Pant scored 28 runs in his 68-ball innings, hitting three sixes and one four.
Why did you leave your aggressive style and bat like this?
So why did Pant, known for hitting long sixes and batting fast, bat so slowly? The answer lies in preparation for the series. In fact, Team India will have to face the threat of Sri Lankan spinners in this series. Dealing with them won’t be easy, and the challenge for the batsmen will be daunting. In such a situation, Team India will need a batsman like Pant, who can counter-attack the spinners and change the course of an innings or match. But for this, Pant himself needed to practice batting against spin in Sri Lankan conditions. This is why Pant spent as much time at the crease as possible and batted extensively against the spinners.