India vs New Zealand: Will an injury-hit Rishabh Pant take part in the 2nd Test-Match in Pune?

Rishabh Pant: A knee injury suffered by India's elite wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant has created a lot of difficulties for the Rohit Sharma-led team ahead of the 2nd-test versus New Zealand in the city of Pune. The 27-year-old sustained a blow on the third day of the 1st Test-Match in Bangalore, which the Men in Blue lost by a margin of eight-wickets.

Despite suffering an injury, the explosive Pant walked out to bat in Team India's second inning and played a fantastic knock of 99 runs with the assistance of five maximums and and nine good-looking fours.

However, he didn't come out to keep the wickets in the second inning of the Kiwis. His injury is really worrisome as it affects the same knee that required surgery last year after a major vehicle-accident in December of 2022.

What did Rohit Sharma say regarding the injury of Wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant?

In the post-match press-conference of the 1st Test-Match between India and New Zealand, skipper Rohit Sharma expressed the need of being watchful about the recovery of Pant, acknowledging the multiple-surgeries the Delhi Capitals skipper has gone through on his knee since his accident.

"His knee has undergone extensive surgery. We need to exercise caution regarding his whereabouts and his relationship to us. He wasn't feeling comfortable while running between the wickets, even when he was batting out there in the middle. With someone like him, we just need to be extra careful, because he's had a lot of minor-surgeries and one big-surgery on his knee. You know, he was trying to hit the ball out of the ground", the Indian captain said

Sharma also insisted on the physical-demands of wicket-keeping and also gave an explanation regarding the team-management?s decision to rest Pant from those wicket-keeping duties in the 1st Test-Match.

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He also emphasised on the difficulties faced by Rishabh while batting out there in the middle, often choosing to play big shots rather than relying on securing one's and two's by running between the wickets.

"In the past one and a half years, he (Pant) has, to be honest, experienced a great deal of trauma. So, it's just a matter of exercising additional caution around him. Given the wicket and the fact that you have to bend your knee down while you're keeping the wickets, we felt that he should remain inside and then prepare himself fully for the next one,? Sharma added.

Pant?s participation remains doubtful for 2nd Test-Match versus New Zealand

Rishabh Pant's participation in the upcoming 2nd-Test-Match in the city of Pune remains doubtful. The final conclusive decision will be taken by the duo of head-coach Gautam Gambhir and skipper Rohit Sharma. According to some news-reports, The team's management has reportedly postponed the final decision in order to allow for flexibility dependent on Pant's fitness prior to the game.

With barely two months to go before the highly anticipated Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia, Pant's fitness is essential for India. The Indian team's management is reportedly considering resting the 27-year-old for the upcoming 2nd-Test-Match versus the Black Caps. A final call is anticipated to be taken soon.

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