Former Indian fast bowler Ashish Nehra has opined that Rishabh Pant must be unhappy with his shot selection.
Pant once again got off to a start as he scored 27 runs off 50 balls in the first innings of the third Test match against South Africa at Newlands, Cape Town on Tuesday.
Pant had added an alliance of 51 runs with Indian skipper Virat Kohli and the duo was looking confident at the crease. However, the southpaw could not handle extra bounce against Marco Jansen and gave an easy catch to Keegan Petersen at gully.
Pant has come under scrutiny for his shot selection as he was dismissed for a duck after playing a rash shot in the second innings of the second Test match.
Nehra added India was put under pressure after they lost two quick wickets of Rishabh Pant and Ravichandran Ashwin after the tea break.
Reviewing Day 1 for Cricbuzz, Nehra said: “India was in a good position at tea. But, lost 6 wickets for 50 – 55 runs. India lost Pant’s wicket at the wrong time. Pant must be unhappy with his shot selection. There was extra bounce, but he will have to consider the kind of shots he’s playing.”
He continued: “The two wickets of R Ashwin and Rishabh Pant after tea put pressure on Virat Kohli. But India must be unhappy with their batting especially after tea as the conditions had improved. The pitch was doing a lot more when Pujara or Rahane got out.”
On the other hand, Ashish Nehra rated Shardul Thakur’s cut shot for six as the shot of the day despite some glorious cover drives from the blade of Virat Kohli.
“Virat hit a few beautiful cover drives. But the shot of the day for me was the cut played by Thakur [for six over backward point] and the back-foot punch of Maharaj [for four].”
Nehra also heaped praise on Virat Kohli for playing a superb knock and showing all the patience in his innings.
“Kohli played with ease after the tea break. He played a pull and a couple of gorgeous drives. It seemed he would make his century today. But, we’ll have to wait. Nevertheless, this was a very important innings, considering the conditions.”
South Africa will begin the second day’s proceedings at 17-1.
