Rishabh Pant Fractures Right Foot, Set to Miss Rest of England Series

India’s wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant has been ruled out of the remainder of the Old Trafford Test and is set to miss the final Test at The Oval after suffering a fracture to his right foot. The injury, which happened during the opening day of the fourth Test, has turned out to be more serious than initially feared.

Pant was batting on 37 when he tried to pull off one of his trademark reverse sweeps against Chris Woakes. Unfortunately, he inside-edged the ball onto his front (right) foot and was in immediate discomfort. The pain was so intense that he had to retire hurt and was seen leaving the field on a golf buggy. By then, the area had already begun to swell, sparking concerns that the injury might be significant. 

Later that day, scans confirmed a fracture to the metatarsal bone in Pant’s right foot. According to early medical assessments, the recovery is expected to take around six to eight weeks, ruling him out of not just the rest of this series. Eyewitness footage from outside the team hotel showed Pant sporting a moonboot. While the BCCI hasn’t issued an official confirmation yet, it’s almost certain that Pant won’t be able to take the field in the remainder of the fourth Test. Whether he’ll bat or not is still undecided and will depend on inputs from the team management and medical team. 

Commenting on the incident, Ravi Shastri, speaking on Sky Sports, said, "Just seeing his face, grimacing there. He has a pain threshold that's very high, and for him to be grimacing in pain in that fashion makes it very serious. It can only get worse overnight." He added, "When you get up in the morning, it can be really sore, no matter the amount of ice you put. He will be icing it through the night. Let's hope it's not a break or it's not a crack." 

Unfortunately, it did turn out to be a break. This is now the second time in back-to-back Tests that Pant has picked up an injury. In the previous match at Lord’s, he had injured his left index finger while keeping wickets. Dhruv Jurel had to step in back then, and he might have to don the gloves once again in Pant’s absence. 

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