Kapil Dev on Rishabh Pant’s accident: ‘I will slap him hard’

Rishabh Pant has been out of action since he encountered a tragic road accident last year. The 25-year-old was driving to his hometown Roorkee from Delhi on 30 December to meet his family. During his journey, Pant suffered a horrific accident as his car crashed into a road divider, injuring him seriously. He tore three knee ligaments, two of which were recently repaired, and would likely undergo surgery for the third tear. The cricketer is expected to be out for a year.

While the entire cricketing fraternity is praying for his speedy return, former India player Kapil Dev shelled out a shocking remark saying that after Pant gets back on his feet, he will “slap” him. He asserted that the youngster’s injury issue has become a major factor in the Indian team’s combinations, going into the all-important India-Australia Test series.

Kapil Dev, speaking on Uncut, wished for Pant’s speedy recovery as well as expressed his anger for the young cricketer’s reckless accident. He also highlighted the fact that Pant’s “mistake” has certainly “spoiled the combination of the whole team.”

“That is why there is love and affection that you recover quickly. I want you to recover, and when you do, I’ll walk over and slap you hard for not taking care of yourself,” the 1983 World Cup-winning skipper explained further.

Owing to his long recovery period, Pant will miss a number of important fixtures including the upcoming home series against Australia and the 2023 ICC World Cup which is scheduled for October. He has become a crucial component of India’s Test squad thanks to some impressive performances in the past years.

Pant was at the peak of his form when India travelled to Australia for the previous edition of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy. In the historic Gabba Test which was also the series decider, he played a blazing knock of 89 runs in 138 deliveries, guiding the visitors to clinch a 2-1 victory in the four-game series.

Taking that into account, Kapil Dev acknowledged that the Indian team will struggle to find a replacement for Pant in the middle order. As stated by the ex-cricketer, the Rohit Sharma-led unit will miss the southpaw’s aggressive approach and counter-attacking mentality in Tests. However, in the end, he referred to Suryakumar Yadav as the most viable option for taking over Pant’s role. The limited-over specialist has just earned his maiden Test call-up for the Australia series.

Read all the Latest News, Trending News, Cricket News, Bollywood News, India News and Entertainment News here. Follow us on Facebook, Twitter and Instagram.