After the row about time-wasting at Lord’s came an unscheduled 10‑minute delay on the opening day in Manchester but this time no one was grumbling. It ended with Rishabh Pant being driven off on a golf buggy nursing a suspected broken foot, the agony on his face as clear as the egg that had swollen up within seconds.
This was a very Pant way to get injured, India’s maverick wicketkeeper attempting a reverse sweep off Chris Woakes only to bottom edge the ball straight on to his boot. England burned a review for the lbw but it still proved as good as a wicket, Pant retiring on 37 and his further role in this pivotal fourth Test left very much in doubt.
