Team India is certain to face a huge blow as their wicketkeeper batter, Rishabh Pant, has been ruled out of the fifth and the series decider test against England at the Oval. The 27-year-old suffered a foot injury on Day 01 of the fourth test at Old Trafford, Manchester, and came out to bat on the second day to score a crucial 54-run knock for his team.

However, it was Dhruv Jurel who was appointed as a substitute in the middle of the match to perform the wicketkeeping duties in place of Pant.

On Sunday (July 27), the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) officially revealed the national team’s squad for the forthcoming test, with Narayan Jagadeesan receiving his maiden test call to replace Pant.

Having been one of the main contributors in the batting line-up, Rishabh surpassed former English skipper Alec Stewart’s record of scoring the most runs in a single test series in England.

Rishabh Pant’s Performance in the Anderson Tendulkar Trophy 2025

In 4 matches, Pant scored 479 runs in 7 innings at an average of 68.42 and a strike rate of 77.63, which includes 2 centuries and 3 half-centuries. This is the highest runs scored by any Indian wicketkeeper in a single test series, thereby breaking former cricketer Farokh Engineer’s record of 415 runs against England back in 1972-73.

Here is an overview of his impressive scores as a No.5 batter for India in the current five-match test series:

Gautam Gambhir Heaps Praises on Rishabh Pant

After the fourth test concluded in a draw, Team India’s head coach Gautam Gambhir confirmed Rishabh Pant’s unavailability for the forthcoming match and praised his contributions throughout the series:

“Yeah! It’s confirmed that he (Rishabh Pant) has been ruled out of the series. Most importantly, I wanted to convey the fact that the team’s temperament and fundamentals will be built based on Rishabh’s contributions to the team as well as the entire nation.

Any encouraging words wouldn’t be enough to praise him, particularly his intent to score runs for his team despite batting with a fractured foot. Not many batters have managed to do this in the past.

I strongly believe that the upcoming generations will talk about it and should certainly speak about it.

Unfortunately, we will miss him because of his current form. Also, he is a core player of our test squad. We hope that he will recover and make a quick comeback,” Gambhir said.

Can Jagadeesan Be a Perfect Replacement For Rishabh Pant?

Although N. Jagadeesan is unlikely to be a like-for-like replacement for Rishabh Pant, he can be his backup for the remainder of the Anderson Tendulkar Trophy 2025.  While these two cricketers possess different variations of wicketkeeping skills, Pant’s aggression as a left-handed batter in the middle order would certainly be missed.

With Ishan Kishan’s ankle injury ruling out his possibilities to replace Rishabh, an uncapped player from Tamil Nadu gets an opportunity to represent the national team at a grand stage.

However, Jagadeesan has experience playing 52 first-class matches so far and can challenge Dhruv Jurel to secure a spot in the playing XI. Out of 79 innings, the right-handed batter scored 3,373 runs in 79 innings (Average: 47.50, Strike rate: 62.40), including 10 centuries and 14 half-centuries.

The 29-year-old was granted his visa on Sunday morning (July 27) and is likely to join the Indian squad by Tuesday (July 29) in London.

India’s 18-Member Squad for the Fifth Test in the Anderson Tendulkar Trophy 2025

Here is an updated list of India’s 18-member squad for the fifth and last test match of the Anderson Tendulkar Trophy 2025:

1. Yashasvi Jaiswal
2. KL Rahul
3. Shubman Gill (Captain)
4. Sai Sudharsan
5. Narayan Jagadeesan (Wicketkeeper)
6. Karun Nair
7. Dhruv Jurel (Wicketkeeper)
8. Abhimanyu Easwaran
9. Ravindra Jadeja
10. Washington Sundar
11. Shardul Thakur
12. Jasprit Bumrah
13. Mohammed Siraj
14. Akash Deep
15. Prasidh Krishna
16. Arshdeep Singh
17. Kuldeep Yadav
18. Anshul Kamboj

Overall Opinion

The void left by the injured Rishabh Pant can certainly be felt, particularly on English soil, where his aggressive batting style has been extremely valuable in the present and past.

After a loss in the opening test at Headingley, India made a stronger comeback in their subsequent test at Edgbaston to level the series 1-1. But, England recovered by securing a narrow victory at the Lord’s and despite a hard-fought draw at the Oval in the fourth test, the Ben Stokes-led side are ahead in the 5-match test series with a 2-1 lead in the test series.

India needs a win at the Oval to draw the series with 2-2, while England aims for a series victory by 3-1. Overall, the entire cricket world awaits to see how India ends the series on a high note without Rishabh Pant, as the focus now shifts to the revamped squad to deliver their top-notch performance in a high-octane test at The Oval.