India wicketkeeper Rishabh Pant suffered pain in his right shoulder during the second Test against Sri Lanka in Colombo. Dhruv Jurel revealed that Pant was being monitored by the physio after taking a blow while batting. Jurel later kept wickets as India took complete control after declaring at 503/9.
India wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant suffered pain in his right shoulder during the second Test against Sri Lanka at the Sinhalese Sports Club in Colombo, with Dhruv Jurel stepping in to keep wickets during the final phase of Day 2.
Pant was absent from the field when India came out to bowl late in the day after declaring their first innings at a commanding 503/9. Jurel, who was part of India’s playing XI alongside Pant and KL Rahul, took over wicketkeeping duties as the visitors made an impressive start with the ball.
Speaking at the end of the day’s play, Jurel confirmed that Pant was dealing with a right shoulder issue and said the team’s physiotherapist was monitoring the injury.
“He got hurt on his right shoulder. Physio is monitoring him. Today, I kept wickets because he had pain in his right shoulder. Hopefully, he’ll be fine tomorrow,” Jurel said during the post-day press conference.
Pant’s latest injury concern came after he was struck on the right shoulder by a bouncer from Sri Lankan fast bowler Asitha Fernando during India’s first innings. The blow came in the 94th over, with Pant unable to properly judge the delivery and taking the ball directly on his shoulder.
The physio immediately attended to Pant and applied an ice pack to the affected area. However, the injury did not prevent him from continuing his innings. Pant went on to produce another attacking knock, scoring 63 runs from 89 deliveries and helping India build a huge first-innings total.
The right shoulder blow was not Pant’s first injury scare of the match. On the opening day, he had suffered an impact to his left wrist after being struck by a short delivery from Lahiru Kumara. The incident occurred during the 58th over of India’s innings.
Pant received medical attention on the field, with the physiotherapist applying ice to his wrist before tape was also placed around the affected area. He subsequently walked off unbeaten on three runs at the time, raising concerns about his availability for the remainder of the Test.
Despite the injury setbacks, Pant returned to the middle and played an important role in India’s dominant batting performance. His 63 added valuable runs to India’s imposing total before the visitors declared at 503/9.
Jurel was the standout performer with the bat, producing a sensational unbeaten 115 to strengthen India’s position. His century helped India establish a massive first-innings advantage and also provided crucial depth to the batting order.
India then made an immediate impact with the ball. Prasidh Krishna and Manav Suthar struck late in the day, dismissing Lahiru Udara and nightwatchman Prabath Jayasuriya respectively.
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Sri Lanka ended Day 2 struggling at 8/2 after just three overs, leaving them 495 runs behind India. With the hosts already two wickets down and facing a huge deficit, India remain firmly in control of the second Test.
Pant’s fitness will now be closely monitored ahead of the next day’s play. Jurel’s successful stint behind the stumps has provided India with cover, but the team will hope Pant’s right shoulder problem does not worsen and that the wicketkeeper-batter is fit to resume his duties.
