“Rishabh Pant took responsibility, played a knock which was out of character” - Vikram Rathour
Team India’s batting coach Vikram Rathour praised Rishabh Pant for taking responsibility and playing a mature knock on Day 4 of The Oval Test against England. Pant scored 50 off 106 balls, hitting only four fours in his innings.
According to Rathour, the wicketkeeper-batter played an innings that was of character but was exactly what the team needed at that point. After Team India skipper Virat Kohli was dismissed for 44, Pant and Shardul Thakur (60) added 100 for the seventh wicket to lift the team.
At a virtual press conference following the end of the day’s play, Rathour lauded Pant for responding to a challenging situation.
“Rishabh Pant’s innings was extremely important. The situation he went in, we needed a partnership there. He took the responsibility and played a knock which was out of character. He approached the innings really well, played with a lot of discipline,” Rathour said.
The batting coach admitted that Pant can be a much more valuable player to the team if he can adapt his batting according to different circumstances.
“We all know that he has the ability. If he can bring this ability of his to the forefront and play differently in different situations, that will do really well for him and for the Indian team as well. I do keep talking to him. He understood the situation we were in as a team and what was required. To his credit, he could play an innings that will give him a lot of confidence going forward,” Rathour added.
Pant was dismissed immediately after reaching his half-century as he tried to take on Moeen Ali. Having done all the hard work, he was hugely disappointed and labored back to the dressing room.
“We have always been looking to score runs” - Vikram Rathour
One of the biggest positives for India from The Oval Test so far has been the positivity displayed by the batters. According to Rathour, the team’s motive has always been to score runs, which is looking more prominent in the current Test due to the surface on offer.
“We have always been looking to score runs. That has been the idea from the beginning of the series. But why it is happening more here is because this one of the better surfaces we have played on. That is one of the major reasons why you are seeing more shots being played. Otherwise also, since the start of this series, the idea has been to look to score runs and not get into any tentative mood,” Rathour said while responding to a query from Sportskeeda.
Team India ended their second innings on 466, setting England a target of 368. The hosts went to stumps on Day 4 at 77 for no loss.