Rishab Pant latest injury update ahead of day two of the Old Trafford Test

Indian vice-captain Rishab Pant suffered a fatal injury on his right foot while attempting a reverse-sweep against Chris Woakes, which turned out to be horribly wrong. The incident took place during the fourth ball of the 68th over. Pant was facing up to Wokes, who bowled a full-pitched delivery, marginally outside the off-stump line. While premeditating, Pant tried to be a bit adventurous by pulling out the reverse sweep. Sadly, it did not go down too well for him as he completely missed the line of the ball and got hit flush on his right foot. 

Following that blow, Pant's right foot became swollen. The Indian vice-captain reacted in pain and asked for the assistance of a golf-style buggy to get him off the field. Evidently, he was forced to retire hurt and left the field for further medical evaluation. His inability to put any weight on his right foot was a concerning sign for Team India. Liam Dawson, who made his comeback after eight long years, had a close look at this incident and wished him a speedy recovery. However, the spinner does not foresee Pant playing any further role in this Test match.

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Will Pant be able to take the field on day two?

In the immediate aftermath of his injury, Pant was initially taken to the medical facility before making a trip to the hospital for subsequent scans. The results of his scans are yet to be revealed. According to the most recent tweet from the BCCI, it has been learnt that Pant was in the hospital under the supervision of the BCCI’s medical team. However, a clarity of the severity of the injury is yet unknown. It remains unclear whether Rishab Pant will be able to bat on day two. 

It is an evolving situation, and more details are awaited at this stage. Should Pant fail to take the field on day two, India's back-up wicket-keeper Dhruv Jurel will take over the wicket-keeping responsibility. Jurel donned the gloves previously in the Lord's Test when Pant was unavailable for keeping after hurting his fingers. In this Test, Pant has been rocked by another injury scare, and if he fails to regain his fitness in time, then India will essentially be one man down, which will clearly not be good news for the tourists.  

Meanwhile, India finished on a strong note by concluding proceedings at 264-4 on day one. After inserting India to bat first, Stokes & Co. failed to make early inroads as day one belonged to the visitors. Pant's innings of 37 off 48 balls was largely restrained but featured several characteristically outrageous shots, including a slog sweep for four off Jofra Archer, followed by an unsuccessful reverse sweep off the next ball.