A light-hearted incident unfolded on Day 1 of the second Test between India and New Zealand at the Maharashtra Cricket Association Stadium on Thursday, October 24. Wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant was caught on the stump mic advising off-spinner Washington Sundar on how to bowl to New Zealand tailender Ajaz Patel.
Pant suggested, "Washi aage daal sakta hai (You can bowl it a little fuller). Thoda bahar daal sakta hai (You can pitch it a little outside)." Sundar seemed to heed the advice, pitching one up outside the off stump. However, Patel, a left-handed batter born in Mumbai, lofted the delivery for a four over the leg-side field.
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After the shot, Pant was again heard on the stump mic saying, "Yaar mereko kya pata ise Hindi aati hai (I didn't realise he knows Hindi)." Patel was eventually dismissed by Sundar for four runs off nine balls, edging a delivery back onto the stumps.
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Sundar, drafted into the Indian team ahead of the second Test, registered career-best figures of 7-59, helping to bundle New Zealand out for 259 on Day 1.
Since returning to Test cricket after a two-year hiatus due to a car accident, Pant has been consistent with the bat. He made his comeback in September 2024 during the home series against Bangladesh, scoring 39 and 109 in the first Test. In the first Test against New Zealand in Bengaluru, he contributed 20 runs, followed by a defiant 99 off 105 deliveries in the second innings.
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