Rishabh Pant's much-anticipated return to red-ball cricket since his accident in December 2022 lasted just 10 balls, as India A skipper Shubman Gill pulled off a stunning catch running backwards to send the left-hander back on day one of the first-round Duleep Trophy match against India B in Bengaluru on Thursday.
LIVE UPDATES: India A vs India B, Day 1
Trying to hit fast bowler Akash Deep towards the on-side, wicketkeeper-batsman Pant (7) ended up slicing it. Gill, standing at mid-off, never lost sight of the ball even as it appeared to be sailing over him and landing safely. Running backwards, Gill looked to be a yard or two short, but he dived full length at the last second to make up for it and pouch the ball.
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Earlier, Gill won the toss and India A opted to bowl first to make use of any early moisture because of rains lashing Bengaluru over the past few days.
India B got off to a sedate start, losing two wickets before lunch to reach 65 for 2 in 30 overs, with Yashasvi Jaiswal dismissed after getting his eye in. He scored 30.
The post lunch session saw a flurry of wickets as India B slipped to 94 for 7, with only Musheer Khan showing some resistance, while approaching a patient fifty.
Pacers Khaleel Ahmed, Akash Deep and Avesh Khan took two wickets each.
