India vs England: Rishabh Pant's sledge works as Zak Crawley throws his wicket away in anger

Cricket is definitely a mind game. There is a lot of chatter that happens on the field, and the players try to get ‘inside the head’ of the opposition. And, if you wanted a perfect example of this, look no further than what happened on the 1st day of the 4th Test match between India and England in Ahmedabad.

Zak Crawley was the only England batsman who had scored a half-century in the Pink ball Test against the Indian side. And, the visitors would have expected Crawley to once again come out and send the hosts on a leather hunt. But then, Crawley failed to kick on and get a big score, and Rishabh Pant had an important role to play in Crawley’s dismissal.

After the 4th ball of the 8th over, Pant was clearly heard chirping behind the stumps. The Indian wicketkeeper could be heard saying that Crawley was getting angry, and this was enough for the England opener to just throw his wicket away. Immediately off the next ball, Crawley came down the track to Axar Patel and played a shot out of anger. He did not middle the delivery and just spooned a catch straight to mid-off.

You can watch the video of the incident below:

Pant – "Someone is getting angry, Someone is getting angry"
Next ball crawley just threw is wicket😂#INDvsENG #RishabhPant pic.twitter.com/Q1QBtJksuO

— Trollmama_ (@Trollmama3) March 4, 2021

Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow steady the England ship

The England top-order once again failed to show up in the 4th Test. The visitors lost their first three wickets with just 30 runs on the board. While Dom Sibley’s miserable series with the willow continued as he registered his fourth consecutive single-digit score, Crawley too failed to set the stage alight.

England’s fortunes with the bat depended largely on Joe Root, but the England skipper too, perished cheaply and contributed just 5 runs to the total. However, the duo of Ben Stokes and Jonny Bairstow have steadied the ship for the England side. While Bairstow is unbeaten at the crease, and is batting on 28, Stokes has helped himself to a brisk 24 off 40 deliveries.

Axar Patel was once again the destroyer-in-chief. The left-arm spinner has already picked up two wickets, and has given away just 21 runs from his 9 overs. And definitely, the Indian side has its nose in front at this stage of the game. England went into lunch with their scorecard reading 74/3.