Sunil Gavaskar goes against IPL authority to support Rishabh Pant on ‘F’ word co
The high-octane environment of the Indian Premier League (IPL) often pushes players to their absolute physical and emotional limits. Recently, this pressure boiled over when Rishabh Pant inadvertently dropped the ‘F’ word during a live post-match presentation ceremony, catching the entire cricket fraternity off guard. While commentators like Ian Bishop rushed to apologize on air to maintain the sanctity of the game, Indian batting legend Sunil Gavaskar has taken a completely different stance. In his recent column, Sunil Gavaskar goes against IPL authority to support Rishabh Pant on ‘F’ word co, arguing that the governing body needs to re-evaluate how it treats losing captains immediately after highly stressful matches.
The Post-Match Slip of the Tongue and the Commentary Box Apology
The incident occurred right after a disappointing match that marked the team’s ninth defeat of the season. A visibly exhausted and frustrated Rishabh Pant was called up to explain his team’s performance. During the live broadcast, his raw emotions took over, leading to the uncensored slip of the tongue. The sudden use of the ‘F’ word left commentators and viewers stunned. Ian Bishop, a highly respected former cricketer turned commentator, immediately apologized on behalf of Pant to keep the broadcast family-friendly and uphold the standards of the “gentleman’s game.”
Sunil Gavaskar’s Unexpected Defence of Rishabh Pant
While many expected strict reprimands, Sunil Gavaskar chose to defend the captain. This support is particularly noteworthy given Gavaskar’s history with Pant; the legendary opener had previously labeled Pant ‘stupid’ during India’s Border-Gavaskar Trophy campaign. However, in this instance, Gavaskar showed immense empathy. Writing in his column for Mid-day, Gavaskar emphasized that the slip was a product of pure, unadulterated post-match emotion and physical exhaustion rather than malice. In the middle of this controversy, Gavaskar backed the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG) captain, explaining that the ‘F’ word came out of pure emotions.
Gavaskar pointed out that the current IPL protocol of dragging the losing captain directly to the microphone mere minutes after a loss is deeply flawed. He suggested that the IPL authorities need to reconsider this sequence to allow players to process their thoughts and cool down before facing the media.
The Extreme Demands on a Wicketkeeper-Captain
Gavaskar went into detail about the physical and mental toll modern T20 cricket takes on captains, particularly those who also shoulder wicketkeeping duties. Wicketkeepers are constantly active, running up and down the stumps for every single delivery under intense heat. When a match ends in a tight, last-over finish, the disappointment of a loss is magnified tenfold.
In his column, Gavaskar wrote: “Rishabh Pant dropping the ‘F’ word in his post-game interview does make one wonder whether it is necessary to interview the captain whose team has just lost the game barely minutes earlier. If it’s been a last-over finish, then the disappointment for the captain would be even greater, and if he is also the wicketkeeper who has been running up and down to the stumps every other delivery and that too in this heat, then it can add to his frustration.”
A Proposed Restructuring of IPL Presentation Ceremonies
To prevent similar incidents in the future, Gavaskar offered a practical and constructive solution to the IPL authorities. Under the current format, the losing captain is traditionally the first person called to speak at the post-match ceremony, followed by the winning captain and then the Player of the Match. Gavaskar believes this order should be reversed.
He suggested that organizers should interview the Player of the Match from the winning team first. This minor adjustment would give the defeated captain a crucial window of time to recuperate. “It might be a better idea to speak to the ‘player of the match’ from the winning team and give the captain of the losing team a little time to splash some water on his face and regain his composure, and then come over for an interview,” Gavaskar proposed. This simple change would ensure that captains do not have microphones shoved in their faces while they are still struggling to catch their breath.
Understanding Rishabh Pant’s Natural Temperament
Gavaskar also highlighted that Pant is naturally one of the most cheerful and positive characters on the cricket field. Pant is known for his unique, joyful approach to the sport, which makes his sudden outburst even more telling. If someone as naturally upbeat as Pant can lose his cool, it indicates that the system itself is putting an unreasonable amount of immediate pressure on defeated players.
As Gavaskar concluded in his column: “Rishabh Pant is one of the most cheerful guys in the game who loves playing the sport in his own unique way. And the fact that even he lost it does make the case for the losing team’s captain to be given a few more minutes to recover his thoughts rather than have the mic shoved in his face even before he has had time to get his breath back.” By advocating for this change, Gavaskar is urging the IPL hierarchy to show greater empathy toward the athletes who make the tournament a global spectacle.
