'No point in jumping here and there and gifting wicket' - Madan Lal advises Rishabh Pant to spend more time at the crease

Rishabh Pant and Shardul Thakur provided the upper hand to India on day four of the fourth Test match against England. Both of them hit half-centuries to help India post the target of 368 for the hosts. Rishabh Pant looked compact whilst his knock of 50. His innings was of a different template as compared to his usual batting style. Former Indian cricketer Madan Lal was also impressed with Pant’s batting in the second innings.

Pant didn’t have a very good Test series so far but managed to hit an impressive half-century on day four of the fourth Test. Meanwhile, Madan Lal has advised him to keep the momentum going and spend more time on the crease.

“Yesterday he (Pant) applied himself very well in the second innings. In the first three Tests, he didn’t play well. He is an exciting player and very valuable too… needs to spend some time in the middle. No point in jumping here and there and gifting wicket. Getting out to some brilliant delivery is fine but gifting a wicket is not good. I liked the way he played yesterday. This is how you play Test cricket or say any format. He must keep this momentum going,” Madan Lal was quoted as saying by Circleofcricket..

Rohit is of a different class: Madan Lal

Rohit Sharma’s long wait of a maiden overseas Test century finally came to an end as he hit a ton at The Oval in style. England’s bowlers seemed to have no answers to his batting class as he displayed his sheer flair to reach the triple-figure. Lal lavished praises on Rohit Sharma and stated that his century will be long remembered.

“He (Rohit) is of a different class. He adapted to the situation very well. His knock, when India needed it the most, would be remembered for long. Letting him open the innings also boosted his confidence and helped him,” Lal asserted.

The former India cricketer also spoke about the results of the ongoing Test match. He backed the visitors to win the Test but also stated that England needs to do something special to clinch victory.

“England needs to do something special to chase down this total. The wicket is fine and I would look to take quick wickets. Chasing 291 on the final day is not an easy thing, but everything is possible in cricket. Currently, I would say the match is 60-40 in favor of India. India knows how important it is to win this Test because, in the final encounter, it will be really difficult to bounce back,” he added