Another area where Pant excels at, and potentially takes the game away from opponents is his availability to play the situation perfectly. Behind the madness and the mayhem that he induces with the bat, there is always a calculated method that he uses, something which has boded well for India at the time when they lose wickets in a heap (which happened in this game too).

In many games where India’s top and middle order has collapsed, Pant has come to their rescue and has even gone on to tilt the game in India’s favor. In the current WTC final, India currently find themselves in a huge hole where they finished the first innings 173 runs behind in the first innings. This is where Pant’s artistry is sorely missed.

KS Bharat will have an uphill task in this regard. While he has acquitted himself very well with the gloves in his maiden sojourn behind the wickets in these English conditions, his prowess with the bat will be needed now more than ever, especially with India facing a herculean task to avoid a huge deficit. While he is very much capable of doing it, he will have to play the game of his life and then some to make sure that India’s batting reaches a semblance of competence.

However, for now, the Australians will be pretty pleased, especially Nathan Lyon, that it is not Pant who is playing this final, although we do wish the Indian keeper a speedy recovery and hope that he comes back to competitive cricket as quickly as possible.