Manchester, July 24 (IANS) Former India cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar praised vice-captain Rishabh Pant’s brave decision to walk out and bat despite a fractured right foot on day two of ongoing fourth Test against England, adding that this will be one of those moments which will be remembered by the cricketing world for 50 years.

On Thursday, Pant, who retired hurt on the opening day of the fourth Test due to a fracture in the fifth metatarsal of his right foot, received a standing ovation as he hobbled out to the crease and went on to make a courageous 54 off 75 balls – his 18th fifty in the longer format.

“When we saw Rishabh Pant with Gautam Gambhir having a chat, he was in his whites — we thought maybe he might come out to bat at the end of the innings. Who would’ve thought he’d walk in after the fall of the very next wicket? He is injured, but don’t rule out this guy.”

“If he’s told one day that he can’t move his feet, he’s got such wonderful hand-eye coordination that he’ll still be able to dominate. So England would be worried that Rishabh Pant is back, even though he looked clearly in pain. This is clearly Rishabh Pant’s decision; he decided, ‘I’m going to go out there’.”

“And when you do things like this — gestures like Anil Kumble bowling with his jaw strapped, those are moments in history you remember 50 years from now. It shows how keen he is to turn up for India. There’s something about Test cricket, especially when it’s being played in England.”

“Look at the amount of attention you get as a cricketer here. This is where he wants to give his best. If you wonder why he hasn’t made the same impact in white-ball cricket, maybe this is why. Because Pant wants to leave a mark on Test cricket more than any other format,” said Manjrekar on JioHotstar.

Apart from Pant’s 54, B Sai Sudharsan and Yashasvi Jaiswal shined with 61 and 58 respectively, as India made 358 in their first innings. “This is a story I’m going to take home with me forever. This Indian team is missing two senior batters, and there are no senior players like Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane and still they’ve batted nearly 750 overs in the series.”

“That’s just incredible. With almost no experience, they’ve shown outstanding temperament and discipline. It speaks volumes about the hunger and maturity in this group,” concluded Manjrekar.

–IANS

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