Gambhir bats for injury replacements in Test cricket, Ben Stokes slams ridiculous idea

India Today

2 days ago

England captain Ben Stokes has called out the idea of injury replacements in Test cricket. Speaking at the post-match press conference, Stokes reacted to the question of if someone like Rishabh Pant should be allowed an injury replacement. The all-rounder was vehemently opposed to the idea, stating that teams would find loopholes in the law to get fresh players in whenever there is a slight injury.advertisementIn the Manchester Test match, Rishabh Pant fractured his right toe while batting on Day 1 of the game. Pant was retired hurt on Day 1 but was forced to come out to bat on Day 2 of the game given India's precarious position.Pant was allowed a replacement for his wicketkeeping duties according to the law. Dhruv Jurel kept the wickets in his absence, just like he had done in the Lord's Test match. However, the Indian team essentially was left with one less batter in the second innings of the match.
The Indian team informed that Pant, despite being on crutches, would come out to bat if needed. Fans questioned the laws of the game, asking how a player could bat or field with a broken toe?India head coach Gautam Gambhir supported the argument, batting in favour of injury replacements."Yes - if there's an external injury or serious concern, I fully support having a substitute. Especially in a series like this, if someone's visibly injured, there's nothing wrong with making a change. In a long series like this, you can't be forced to play with just ten players," Gambhir argued.Stokes, however, was not a fan and called out the suggestion. Stokes said the rule would end up having too many loopholes and would end up being exploited by teams across the board."I think it's absolutely ridiculous that there's a conversation around an injury replacement," Stokes said. "I think that there would just be too many loopholes for teams to be able to go through. You pick your 11 for a game; injuries are part of the game. I completely understand the concussion replacement: player welfare, [and] player safety. But I think the conversation should just honestly stop around injury replacements because if you stick me in an MRI scanner, I could get someone else in straightaway," Stokes said in the post-match press conference."If you stick anyone else with an MRI scanner, a bowler is going to show, 'Oh yeah, you've got a bit of inflammation around your knee. Oh sweet, we can get another fresh bowler in'. I just think that conversation should be shut down and stopped," he added.advertisementThankfully, India did not need Rishabh Pant to bat in the final innings of the game. Superb hundreds from Shubman Gill, Washington Sundar and Ravindra Jadeja helped India draw the Test match, after fighting for 143 overs.India will now travel to London, where the final Test of the series starts on July 31.- Ends