When KL Rahul, Rishabh Pant came to bat on Day 3, India were 242 runs behind England’s first innings total. But the duo came to the visiting side’s rescue with a 141-run stand, which cut the deficit to 140. But then Lady Luck had other plans, and then in the last over before the interval, Pant was run out for 74 while attempting to put Rahul back on strike, who was looking to complete his ton.
Speaking to reporters after the final session, Rahul accepted part of the blame for Pant’s dismissal, revealing that he was looking to get his hundred before lunch.
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Rahul revealed, “There was a conversation a couple of overs before that. I told him that I will get my hundred if possible before lunch. And with Bashir bowling that last over before lunch, I thought there's a good chance for me to get it, but, yeah, unfortunately I hit straight to the fielder.”
“It was a ball that I could have hit for a boundary. Then he just wanted to rotate strike and see if he could put me back on strike. But, yeah, it shouldn't have happened: a run-out at that stage really changed the momentum. It was disappointing for both of us. Obviously, nobody wants to throw their wicket like that.”
{{/usCountry}}“It was a ball that I could have hit for a boundary. Then he just wanted to rotate strike and see if he could put me back on strike. But, yeah, it shouldn't have happened: a run-out at that stage really changed the momentum. It was disappointing for both of us. Obviously, nobody wants to throw their wicket like that.”
{{/usCountry}}Rahul did eventually get his ton, bagging it after lunch, but then departed immediately as India fell to 254/5. But then Ravindra Jadeja took control, getting a half-century and also had useful partnerships with Nitish Kumar Reddy and Washington Sundar.
Opening up on his dismissal, Rahul said, “Of course there's a little bit of disappointment because till just before tea time we were in a really good position.”
“Me and Rishabh had that long partnership and then we both got out... he got out just before lunch and I got out just after lunch. That wasn't ideal. You had set batters in the top five who had gotten off to starts, so ideally you want one of them or both to go on and get a big score, that's how you get ahead in a Test match,” he added.