India captain Rohit Sharma has emphasized once again on Rishabh Pant’s absence ahead of the Border Gavaskar Trophy opener. Speaking to the media, Sharma made it very clear that the team will miss his service, but exuded confidence that the guys who are at his disposal won’t make Pant’s absence turn into a gaping hole.

Pant played his role to perfection when India toured Australia. In the series decider at Gabba, Pant played a whirlwind knock 89 off 138 balls as India went on to chase down the target of 330 runs to seal the series. However, things took a turn when the cricketer was seriously injured in a car crash while traveling back to his hometown on December 30. He had multiple ligament tears which meant he was ruled out of the series. Meanwhile, as of now, Pant is out of danger and recovering well.

The 25-year-old player shared a picture on his social media page with the caption on Monday: “Never knew just able to sit out and breathe fresh air feels so blessed”.

Coming back to Pant, Rohit said: “We will miss Rishabh Pant but we have guys to fill into the role. We have had a good talk with the batters about their plans and hopefully we will execute it from tomorrow onwards.”

Rohit Sharma, a bonafide white-ball legend, will face his biggest test as India’s red-ball captain against a determined Australian side which would be hungry for revenge when the much-awaited Border-Gavaskar series starts here Thursday.

It is a series that promises a lot of twists and turns, engrossing sub-plots and probably career-defining performances.

It’s such a high-profile rubber that non-performance could lead to end of career for some after this series.

During the hey days of Channel 9, former Australia captain Bill Lawry would often use the term “It’s all happening at the MCG” during exciting games. Trust this four-Test series to throw up more surprises than one can possibly envisage.

The series, a cricket connoisseurs’ delight, will throw up several topics of discussion as the caravan moves from one destination to the other.

Will captain Rohit Sharma curb his instinct to pull Pat Cummins if the Australian captain keeps a long leg and digs one short?

Will Virat Kohli use the sweep shot more often against Ashton Agar and Nathan Lyon as the batting stalwart looks to turn around his ordinary showing against slow bowlers in recent times?

Can Suryakumar Yadav’s ‘three-dimensional’ strokeplay earn him Rahul Dravid’s faith ahead of Shubman Gill, the man touted to lead India’s batting when the transition phase kicks-in in another 18 to 24 months?

(With Agencies)

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