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Rishabh Pant’s foot injury during the fourth Test raised questions about whether teams should be allowed to have substitutes who can bat or bowl in case someone is unable to continue owing to some serious injury.
India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir isn’t averse to the idea. “I’m all for it. If the umpires and the match referee see and feel that there is a major injury, it’s very important to have this rule where you can get a substitute,” Gambhir said after India managed a draw against England at Old Trafford on Sunday.
Despite fracturing his foot and being advised six weeks’ rest, Pant walked out to bat during India’s first innings and went on to score a half-century. Gambhir, while lauding Pant’s efforts, made it clear that a replacement rule is the need of the hour.
“If it (the injury) is very visible, there is nothing wrong in doing that (allowing a replacement). Especially when it’s been such a closely fought series in the previous three Test matches. Imagine if you had to play with 10 men against 11. How unfortunate would that be for us!” Gambhir added.
Though Pant handed over the wicketkeeping duties to Dhruv Jurel, he was ready to bat in the second innings if required.
“The character and the foundation of this team will be built on something Rishabh did for the team and for the country as well. Any amount of praise is not enough for him, especially batting with a broken foot. Not many people have done that in the past,” Gambhir said.
“He put his hand up, and that is why I say any amount of praise (is not enough). The generations to come forward will talk about this—that there is someone who has batted with a broken foot. And it’s unfortunate because of the kind of form he was in. But again, he’s an important member of the Test side. And I hope he recovers, comes back quickly and tries to deliver a game for us,” the head coach said.
He also confirmed that all the fast bowlers are fit and should be available for selection for the final Test at The Oval. However, no decision has been taken on Jasprit Bumrah yet. Before the series got underway, it was decided that the pacer will just play three Tests in the series, and he has already completed his quota.
‘Not a team in transition’
Gambhir hailed the fight Indian batters showed to save the Manchester Test, keeping the series alive going into the final fixture at The Oval in a few days.
“They are making their own history… A lot of people wrote us off in this Test match, but this is the foundation of this team. These are characters who are sitting in this dressing room, wanting to fight for the country, and they will continue to do that,” Gambhir said.
When the Indian team travelled to England under a new captain in Gill, there were doubts about how it would adjust to the conditions. But the team proved its mettle, time and again.
“I don’t believe that the team is in transition, because it’s still an Indian team. And this is the best 18 that is going to represent, and more importantly, it’s not a transition, it’s just a little bit of inexperience,” Gambhir said.
“It’s only about experience and inexperience, and that is how we see this. But the most important thing is that these guys are going to learn a lot from what they did today, because being under pressure and then batting for five sessions is never easy, especially on a Day five wicket ,” Gambhir said, adding: “We got to give it to the guys for the kind of character they have shown.”
