'It actually worked out very well for us' - Rassie van der Dussen on spat with Rishabh Pant at Wanderers

South African batter Rassie van der Dussen revealed his opinion on the verbal spat with Rishabh Pant in the second Test that accounted for the dismissal of the latter to an extent. The 32-year-old had been standing at the short leg position and he was the closest fielder to the batter at the crease. At a time when India needed him the most, Pant got agitated by the words of South African and went after the bowling of Kagiso Rabada in just his third delivery.

However, he could just nick it to an easy catch for the wicketkeeper and India had lost all the momentum they had in the first session of day three. The left-hander faced heavy criticism for his shot selection but he made a brilliant comeback with a century in the second innings of the third Test. Despite Pant’s century, the Proteas chased down the score of 212 in the fourth innings in the 3rd Test and continued their unbeaten streak against India on their home soil.

That was a massive moment: Rassie van der Dussen

Van der Dussen mentioned that Pant did not enjoy his words from the short leg and confirmed that the latter had taken it as an offense. He added that the incident resulted in Pant’s dismissal because the young batter lost his calm at the moment.

“It was a moment of me asking Rishabh (Pant) a few questions. Maybe he didn’t enjoy it too much. I’m not sure why. But there was certainly no hostility from my end. Maybe the way he took it – offense is taken and not given,”

“I was at a nice position at short leg. I had access to him in that sense. And I could ask him a few questions. There was never any hostility. And from there, it just sort of blew up. When I went out to bat, they reciprocated quite nicely. It’s part of the game. It’s Test cricket. It’s tough out there, and everyone’s trying to level basically to gain an inch.” Rassie van der Dussen told ESPN Cricinfo

Van der Dussen was delighted to see the back of Pant in the second innings after the spat he had with him and claimed it to be a “massive moment” in the series. India could have extended their lead above 300 if Pant had formed a partnership which did not happen and the Proteas took the opportunity with both hands.

“I don’t know if he would have played that shot if I wasn’t there or if I didn’t say anything. I know by nature he is that sort of player. In hindsight, it actually worked out very well for us, because I think that was a massive moment in the Test series for sure,” he added