Team India’s acting captain Rishabh Pant admitted that the team missed a golden opportunity to win the first Test match against South Africa in Kolkata. Pant said that the chase should have been completed in the run chase and added that the partnership between Temba Bavuma and Corbin Bosch was the turning point.
South Africa won the first Test by 30 runs at Eden Gardens on Sunday, 16 November. The Temba Bavuma-led side took a 1-0 lead in the two-match series. On the third day, India was chasing the target of 124 runs but collapsed for just 93 runs. With captain Shubman Gill unavailable due to injury, Rishabh Pant captained the team.
We should have chased this score, but… -Rishabh Pant
Speaking after the defeat, Rishabh Pant admitted that the team had lost the match from a winnable position. He said the chase should have been completed but admitted that India were unable to withstand the pressure in the second innings.
Pant said in the post-match presentation, “We think this is the kind of game, you can’t pay too much attention to it. We should have chased this score, but in the second innings the pressure increased on us and we could not take enough advantage.”
Washington Sundar (29), Rishabh Pant (27) and Ravindra Jadeja (27) got good starts but could not convert them into match-winning innings. Harmer won the player of the match award after taking eight wickets in both innings.
Rishabh Pant reveals the turning point of Kolkata Test
Pant also revealed the turning point of the match. Pant admitted that the Bavuma-Bosch stand proved costly and took the match away from India.
“Temba and Bosch had a great partnership in the morning and later in the game we suffered a loss and that changed the game,” admitted Pant.
Bavuma and Bosch made a 47-run partnership for the eighth wicket as South Africa were bowled out for 153. The visiting team had enough runs to defend on a deteriorating surface. Before that partnership, India looked to be in control after bowling out South Africa for 159 and taking a lead of 30 runs.
Rishabh Pant made it clear that the circumstances were no excuse
Pant clarified that the circumstances are no excuse. He acknowledged that the pitch had uneven bounce, but said India’s batsmen needed to handle the smaller target with more composure.
Pant said that the team will not focus on the defeat and will focus on the comeback. He said that India is determined to come back stronger in the next match.
Pant said, “There was help on the wicket, but on this surface a score like 120 can be difficult, but as a team we should be able to handle the pressure and take advantage.”
“We haven’t thought about it. We will come back stronger,” he promised.
Simon Harmer was the best bowler for South Africa with four wickets in the second innings. Aiden Markram, Keshav Maharaj and Marco Johnson took two wickets each.
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