India’s Rishabh Pant has earned plenty of plaudits for his brave act of batting against England in the fourth India vs England Test at Manchester despite a fractured foot. Pant had picked up the injury while attempting an audacious reverse-sweep against Chris Woakes, when he missed the ball and it hit him on the foot. Pant had left the field and was taken for scans while batting on 37 off 48 balls.
Despite being in clear pain, he returned to bat for India — essentially on one leg — with the series on the line and India at 314/6 in the Old Trafford Test. Pant played 27 balls with a fractured toe, to get to his half century In doing so, he helped India reach 358 from an overnight 264 for four.
For many old-time Indian cricket fans, Pant’s heroics brought up memories of Anil Kumble bowling with a broken jaw in the Antigua Test of 2002, where he had managed to get the wicket of Brian Lara.
Kumble had been hit on the jaw by a Merv Dillon bouncer while batting at No 7. The nasty delivery had made Kumble spit out blood. But despite that, Kumble batted on for 20 more minutes. It was in that innings that Ajay Ratra, coming in at No 8 made a century for India. Unlike the current series, where England lead 2-1, the 2002 series when Kumble was hit in the fourth Test was evenly poised with the series scoreline at 1-1.
“It was one of the bravest things I’ve seen on the field of play,” said the legendary Viv Richards later.
Kumble’s heroics for the game were not done. He then returned to bowl as well. also giving the world the enduring image of him bowling with a bandage across his face. When asked later why he had come to bowl despite being in pain, he quipped: “I didn’t want to sit around”.
Anil Kumble bowling with broken jaw. (Screengrab)
Kumble had opened up about the incident in an interview with JioCinema a few years back.
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“I told my wife, Chethana (about the injury). When we spoke, I said, ‘look I know I have to come home because I just need surgery’. So, she arranged for all of that in Bangalore. And as I dropped off the call, I just told her ‘look, I’ll go and bowl’. But she thought probably I was just joking,” Kumble reminisced.
“I don’t think she even took it seriously. What’s he saying? So, when I went back to the dressing room, I saw Sachin bowling because he was the only guy in the team who could bowl and then Wavell Hinds, I think was playing I don’t remember somebody else was batting,” Kumble said.
“And I thought it was my chance. I have to go and get a couple of wickets. If we can get West Indies three or four down, end of day two or three. I think if you can get them out, then maybe, we have a chance to win the game. That was the only thought. So, I told Andrew Leipus – get me out there.”
Kumble was due to fly back to Bangalore the following day for surgery, and he said at that time, “At least I can now go home with the thought that I tried my best.”
