"Let the nation finally know" - Mayank Agarwal discloses whose hand was on Rishabh Pant's shoulder in viral selfie from 2019
Team India all-rounder Hardik Pandya shared a selfie with teammates MS Dhoni, Rishabh Pant, Jasprit Bumrah, and Mayank Agarwal in July 2019.
The picture went viral on social media, with fans unable to guess whose hand was placed on Pant's shoulder. The story behind the mysterious hand finally seems to be over after four years, with Agarwal finally revealing the answer.
The clarification came after a fan asked the question to Dinesh Karthik during a Q&A session on microblogging platform X on Thursday, September 28. Karthik replied by saying that even he was unsure of the answer and only Pant could answer it.
However, Mayank Agarwal stepped in to clear the mystery, admitting that it was his hand on Pant's shoulder. He wrote:
"After years of extensive research, debates, and countless conspiracy theories, let the nation finally know : it is MY hand on @RishabhPant17 shoulder. Ps : any and all other claims are misleading and not true."
Mayank Agarwal last played for India in March 2022. He registered scores of 4 and 22 in a Test match against Sri Lanka in Bengaluru. The right-handed batter seems to have fallen down in the pecking order, courtesy of Shubman Gill's tremendous rise.
Mayank Agarwal was part of the Karnataka team that beat the Netherlands ahead of World Cup 2023
The Netherlands' preparations for the upcoming World Cup 2023 started off on a disastrous not, suffering back-to-back defeats to Karnataka in 50-over matches.
Karnataka were bowled out for 265 in the first encounter. Ravikumar Samarth (81) and Devdutt Padikkal (56) scored fine half-centuries, while Mayank Agarwal contributed 27 runs.
The Netherland batters failed to get going in the run chase, with their top seven batters back in the hut without getting off the mark. They were ultimately bundled out for just 123, losing the contest by 142 runs.
Furthermore, Karnataka also emerged victoriously in the subsequent fixture, eking out a narrow one-wicket win. They chased down a 297-run target, with Manish Pandey shining with the bat, mustering 105 runs.