Who said what - top 5 expert reactions to Rishabh Pant's dismissal in 1st innings of BGT 2024-25 4th Test ft. Michael Hussey

Rishabh Pant's dismissal in the Boxing Day Test in Melbourne on Saturday (December 28) left many experts with a sour taste. Many of them felt the southpaw made a grave mistake in failing to execute his unconventional shot to perfection.

It all happened in the 56th over when Pant tried to play an ambitious ramp shot against Scott Boland. However, he copped a blow on the stomach which left him in discomfort. In the very next ball, the 27-year-old tried a similar shot, but his leading edge was caught at the deep third-man region.

The southpaw was dismissed on 28 off 37 balls and left India in tatters at 191/6.

Nevertheless, Nitish Kumar Reddy (105*) and Washington Sundar (50) played out of their skin to keep India in the game after the conclusion of Day 3.

On that note, let's take a look at the reactions of experts on Rishabh Pant's dismissal in the Melbourne test.

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#1 Sunil Gavaskar

Legendary Indian batter Sunil Gavaskar shared his immediate reaction to Rishabh Pant's dismissal during live commentary on ABC Radio. He slammed the keeper-batter for his reckless shot, despite the two fielders waiting in the deep for the same approach.

"Stupid, stupid, stupid. You've got two fielders there, and you still go for that, you've missed the previous shot. And look where you've been caught. You've been caught at deep third man. That is throwing away your wicket. Not in the situation that India was."

"You have to understand the situation as well, you cannot say that that's your natural game. I'm sorry, that is not your natural game. That is a stupid shot. That is letting your team down badly!" he added.

Afterward, Gavaskar offered his take on Star Sports as well. As per him, if Pant doesn't intend to score runs with an orthodox approach, he needs to shift down the order.

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#2 Michael Hussey

Former Australian cricketers, Mark Waugh and Michael Hussey were involved in a disagreement regarding Rishabh Pant's dismissal during the FOX Sports live broadcast.

Waugh feels the odds were not in favor of Pant and slammed him for playing such a shot at a crucial juncture of the game:

“That’s unacceptable,” Waugh said on Fox Cricket.

“I know he’s a very aggressive player and a player that is a bit out of the box and unpredictable but you’ve got to read the game situation and read the field. There were two men back for that exact shot so the percentages are not in your favour, unless you hit it for six you’re going to be caught somewhere in the deep," he added.

Hussey clapped back by saying that Pant is at best when he opts to play his natural game. Although he was disappointed by his dismissal, Hussey feels the left-hander shouldn't change his approach.

He said:

"It is a difficult situation because it’s not a great shot and it’s not a great look, especially for an Indian team looking to fight hard. But you don’t want to put doubt in his mind, he’s at his best when he’s clear and free and playing his natural way. I’d be disappointed with the shot, I’m sure he’d be disappointed with the shot, but I don’t want him to change the way he plays."

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#3 Parthiv Patel

Former Indian keeper-batter Parthiv Patel was dismissive of Rishabh Pant's detractors. He pointed out the pink-ball Test when people praised Pant for his fearless approach to come down the track and hit his first ball for a four.

Although Patel feels Pant's shot selection is wrong, he admitted that the 27-year-old usually employs the same approach to score runs. He said on Cricbuzz:

"When Rishabh Pant stepped out and hit a four on the first ball in Adelaide, we all were clapping. Whoever has praised Pant's approach has no right to criticize this shot, because if he bats in this way, and question will arise that he will look like this. I agree that the situation did not demand that shot like this but this is his style, he plays like this."

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#4 Ravi Shastri

A renowned commentator Ravi Shastri thinks Rishabh Pant backed himself to pull off the shot, but thought it was risky due to the fielders stationed near the fences. Here's what he said on Star Sports:

"That was a high-risk shot. There was no doubt about that. The field was set, two fielders on the boundary pretty fine, a fly slip and a fine leg as well.

"It's not in every innings he has attempted that shot. So, let's calm down here, guys. It's not every time he's throwing it away."

Shastri also advised Pant to play shots according to the field set up by the opposition for better returns with his unorthodox shots.

“He had done the hard work. The field had spread out. That's one aspect of his batting that has to change with time to come. He's built up a reputation for himself, he comes to the field, he smashes a boundary and the field spreads," Shastri added.

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#5 Dinesh Karthik

Former Indian keeper-batter Dinesh Karthik put forth his opinion in an interaction with Harsha Bhogle on Cricbuzz. He feels the people would have praised Rishabh Pant if the ball had sailed over the fence.

He said:

"People will stand up and applaud if the same ball goes outside the ground, which it did in Bengaluru and everybody said wow Rishabh Pant is back."

Further, Karthik wants fans and the cricket fraternity to understand Pant's natural game, and be measured with their criticism of him.

"For me, I believe it is not about dissecting the shot it is understanding the person and Pant the player will always keep playing that shot. We have to be aware and need to obviously understand his failures as much as we applaud his success," he added.