IND vs SL 2022: "Don't look at the scoreboard" - Brad Hogg believes the quest for fastest fifty led to Rishabh Pant's dismissal in 2nd Test
Former Australian spinner Brad Hogg was critical of Rishabh Pant's approach while nearing the record of the fastest Test fifty by an Indian player. The wicket-keeper eventually broke Kapil Dev's record, registering his fifty in 28 balls in the second innings of the pink ball Test in Bengaluru.
Rishabh Pant has the fastest fifty in Test cricket for 🇮🇳 💪
A record that has #RP17 vibes written all over it 💙
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Hogg highlighted how Pant was fazed by a tricky delivery by Praveena Jayawickrama prior to reaching the record. He felt that the changed body language due to the pressure of the milestone led to his dismissal a couple of deliveries later.
The 25-year-old was undone by the left-arm spinner after he went for a huge heave on the leg-side. Dissecting Pant's wicket on his YouTube channel, Hogg said:
"Wonderful job by Rishabh Pant in the second innings, but when he was facing the last four balls off Jayawickrama. The first delivery of those particular four balls, Jayawickrama put the ball a little wider on a good length and made Pant fetch it."
Hogg added:
"The change of line and length forced him to change it. After that delivery, he started to calm himself down, you could see the body language became exaggerated. I feel like he knew that the record was there to take."
Opining that the change in mindset caused Pant's downfall, Hogg continued:
"The change of mindset caused his downfall because if you look at the delivery after the fifty, he went back and across and shouldered arms. For me, when you're coming up to a milestone and you want to calm yourself down, I don't think that is a good idea. Don't look at the scoreboard. You have got to try and keep the momentum going. If there is a ball to be hit, just hit it."
Rishabh Pant was awarded the Player of the Series award for his performance in the Test series against Sri Lanka.
Apart from notching the record for the fastest Test fifty by an Indian, he played a couple more important knocks in the series. Pant was also excellent behind the stumps on challenging surfaces.
"I want to see Rohit Sharma under pressure" - Brad Hogg
Leading India across all three formats on a full-time basis, Rohit Sharma endured a flawless home season with no defeats under his captaincy. The 34-year-old led India to victories in all contests against the visiting New Zealand, West Indies and Sri Lanka sides.
bit.ly/WTC-Standings
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It's a perfect start for India under Rohit Sharma's captaincy as they move up in the #WTC23 standings with the win in Bengaluru ⬆
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Terming that Rohit Sharma's true test comes after the IPL, Hogg said:
"India have got four Test matches against Australia, that's going to be tough for Rohit Sharma. I want to see him under pressure. Will he keep that same calm body language or will we see a little bit of temper?"
The former chinaman bowler added:
"He has got a T20 series against South Africa at home, a tour of England, and the T20 World Cup Down Under. So, the pressure tournaments are coming for Rohit right now."
Rohit Sharma will be seen leading the Mumbai Indians in the upcoming IPL 2022. The five-time champions will begin their campaign against the Delhi Capitals on March 29 at the Brabourne Stadium.