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Cricket PlayersWatch: Jadeja's quirky reply to 'why didn't Pant play?' question leaves journalists in splits before India vs Hong Kong
The Pant topic is still fresh in the minds of fans and reporters alike, which is probably why a journalist during a press conference asked Ravindra Jadeja why Pant did not play against Pakistan, to which the India all-rounder came up with a rather quirky reply.
Fresh off a win over Pakistan, India would be looking to seal their place in the Super Four of Asia Cup 2022 when they take on Hong Kong at the Dubai International Stadium on Wednesday. As expected, India start favourites against a team that hasn't played much cricket lately, and given the number of youngsters available in the squad, there is plenty of room for experimentation in the Hong Kong game. Don't be surprised if the likes of Deepak Hooda, Ravichandran Ashwin and Ravi Bishnoi get a look-in irrespective of the fact that every result counts in this tournament.
When India played against Pakistan, one decision that left a few surprised was the omission of Rishabh Pant from the Playing XI and Dinesh Karthik being the wicketkeeper batter for the team. Karthik was picked over Pant for reasons only the team management and captain Rohit Sharma knows, but against Hong Kong, Pant can definitely get a chance ahead of one of the top order batters. The Pant topic is still fresh in the minds of fans and reporters alike, which is probably why a journalist during a press conference asked Ravindra Jadeja why Pant did not play against Pakistan, to which the India all-rounder came up with a rather quirky reply.
"I absolutely don't know this. This is a question out of my book," said Jadeja.
Watch Video: Ravindra Jadeja's reply to jouralist's ‘why didn’t Rishabh Pant play vs Pakistan?' question
The last time India and Hong Kong played an ODI match, which took place during the 2018 Asia Cup, something unexpected happened. After India posted 285/7, Hong Kong came up with a stunning reply, with their openers Nizakat Khan and captain Anshuman Rath putting on 174 runs for the opening wicket.
The upset of the century was on the cards before Yuzvendra Chahal and Khaleel Ahmed got India back in the game and they won the match, albeit by a small margin of 26 runs. The result from four years back is probably fresh in the minds of India which is why Jadeja said the team is not taking Hong Kong lightly for their match on Wednesday.
"Definitely we are going to play with a positive mindset and we are not going to take them lightly because in T20 on a given day anything could happen. So will look to play positive cricket and give our best," pointed out Jadeja
