West Indies Vs India: Enough Of Babysitting! Rishabh Pant Faces Wrath After Golden Duck In 3rd ODI

In the third ODI match against the West Indies on Wednesday, Rishabh Pant threw away his wicket while trying to send Fabien Allen out of the park, only to see his mistimed hoick land in the hands of Keemo Paul at mid-off. What made the dismissal look worse was that it came off the very first delivery that he faced

Outlook Web Bureau

Updated on: 15 August 2019 9:18 pm

Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant's poor show with the bat continued unabated as he got out for a golden duck in the third and final ODI against the West Indies at Queen's Park Oval, Port of Spain, drawing the fans' ire for his lack of patience.

(REPORT | HIGHLIGHTS | SCORECARD)

Hours after the match got over, his name continued to trend on social media with angry fans venting their anger out. Often hailed as the heir to legendary Mahendra Singh Dhoni, and considering his raw talent, Pant has been given a long rope by the Indian team management. He's even used as a fix to solve the number four issue. But he is yet to justify that trust.

For the record, the 21-year-old has so far had a forgettable Caribbean tour, managing scores of 0, 4, 65, 20, 0 in the T20I and ODI series, though India won both the series.

Also Read: Pant Leaves Everyone Angry With Yet Another Dismal Performance

In the third ODI on Wednesday, Pant threw away his wicket while trying to send Fabien Allen out of the park, only to see his mistimed hoick land in the hands of Keemo Paul at mid-off. What made the dismissal look worse was that it came off the very first delivery that he faced.

"Enough of babysitting the babysitter. Teach him the value of a wicket with some punishment," a fan wrote on Twitter.

Enough of babysitting the babysitter. Teach him the value of a wicket with some punishment.#RishabhPant #INDvWI
— Ashok Mithra D (@mithra_d) August 14, 2019

Celebrated commentator Harsha Bhogle took to Twitter and wrote, "this is a shot that Rishabh Pant will want to forget but shouldn't. It should remind him of how much ability he is wasting. He is a batsman-keeper, not the other way around, so his batting must speak for him even more."

This is a shot that Rishabh Pant will want to forget but shouldn't. It should remind him of how much ability he is wasting. He is a batsman-keeper, not the other way around, so his batting must speak for him even more.
— Harsha Bhogle (@bhogleharsha) August 14, 2019

Ironically, on the eve of the match, Pant said that his focus remains just on playing a positive brand of cricket and winning matches for India. But as it turned out, he got another first-ball duck in this tour.

And not all comments were gentle, with some even saying Pant should retire before Dhoni.

Rishabh Pant should retire before MS Dhoni ! #INDvWI #indiancricketteam
— Miheer Prabhu (@mi_prabhu) August 15, 2019

Here are some other reactions:

Why is #RishabhPant still playing
Can't @imVkohli play @ishankishan51
C'mon be sensible...
— The amazing troller (@pranavkumarjh18) August 14, 2019

What are you doing Rishabh Pant
— alaulrahaman45 (@alaulrahaman45) August 15, 2019

Rishabh Pant is highly overrated player.He plays only in IPL & when it comes to international games he doesn't play upto mark & always get out by playing irresponsible shots.Time came to give Chance to Sanju Samson or Ishan Kishan otherwise Dhoni have to play till #WC23.#INDvsWI
— MS (@EngineerMs16) August 15, 2019

I've only just now checked the scorecard from last night.

Rishabh Pant out first ball trying to loft a spinner.

Honestly, not even surprised. Questions must be asked of the coaching staff more than him, as to what they're telling him. #INDvWI
— Elixir Of Azazel (@vyatikram188) August 15, 2019

In comparison, batting at No. 5, Shreyas Iyer showed much more composure for his 41-ball 65, thus putting more pressure on Pant for a chance in the crucial No. 4 slot.

Batting great Sunil Gavaskar had recently backed Iyer over Pant for the number four position in ODIs.

(With IANS inputs)