Rishabh Pant's stop-start outing in the IPL 2026 clash between Lucknow Super Giants and Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Wednesday, April 15 ended in dramatic fashion, with Phil Salt pulling off a stunner to dismiss the LSG captain shortly after his return from injury.
Earlier in the innings, Pant was forced to walk off retired hurt after being struck on the left elbow by a Josh Hazlewood delivery in the fifth over, visibly struggling to continue after the blow.
Here's a look at how Pant got injured:
Pant's brief stay at the crease had already been a struggle. Promoted to No. 3 following Aiden Markram's early dismissal, he faced three consecutive dot balls from Hazlewood before the Australian quick banged one in short.
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Going for the pull, Pant was cramped for room and took a painful blow on the elbow, immediately dropping his bat in discomfort. After on-field treatment, he chose to walk off, with LSG under pressure in the powerplay.
Pant returned late in the innings with LSG in further trouble but managed just one run before falling in the 19th over.
Attempting to flick Bhuvneshwar Kumar towards the leg side, Pant failed to keep the shot down, and Salt sprinted in from the deep to complete a low diving catch, getting his hands under the ball at full stretch.
Here's a look at the stunner Salt pulled off to dismiss Pant:
The wicket capped a difficult outing for Pant, who couldn't come out to keep wickets and help LSG defend their modest total of 146 against a rampaging RCB batting line-up at the Chinnaswamy Stadium.
On the other hand, the dismissal underlined what is quickly becoming a defining trait of Salt's IPL career. The England international specialises in keeping wickets but has emerged as one of the standout fielders in the competition, consistently producing high-impact moments.
Earlier this season, he set the tone in match 1 against Sunrisers Hyderabad, taking a stunning one-handed catch near the boundary to dismiss a well-set Ishan Kishan.
In IPL 2025, he had already delivered on the biggest stage, taking a high-pressure catch at the boundary in the final to remove Priyansh Arya, a moment that proved decisive in RCB securing their maiden title.
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