Watch: Rishabh Pant fumes as umpire denies ball change request

Indian wicketkeeper, Rishabh Pant staged a rare sight of frustration on Day 3 of the opening Test at Headingley. Pant reacted with visible irritation after on-field umpire Chris Gaffaney declined India’s request for a ball change. The visitors had been declined the request before as well. The incident unfolded shortly after the appeal from Jasprit Bumrah was denied, with the ball passing the gauge test. Pant, dissatisfied, took it upon himself to approach the umpire and press the matter further. But when the ball was still ruled fit for play, Pant vented his irritation by flinging it in a backhanded motion toward Mohammed Siraj, a moment that didn’t go unnoticed.

Rishabh Pant asked the umpire to change the ball, got denied and then threw it in frustration 😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/F1A78XGwWV

— Sandy (@flamboypant) June 22, 2025

The crowd at Headingley responded swiftly, with loud jeers filling the air in reaction to Pant’s show of dissent. Though the ball wasn’t thrown in anyone’s direction and Siraj calmly collected it. However, the act of frustration could still fall under the match referee’s radar, as it bordered on publicly challenging an umpiring call. The outburst was an unusual moment from Pant, who until then had delivered a composed performance both behind the stumps and with the bat. His century in the first innings was one of the highlights of the visitors' effort in the India vs England Test.

India’s frustration over the condition of the ball, however, didn’t end with Pant. In the very next over, skipper Shubman Gill was seen having a word with Gaffaney, also pointing out concerns about the ball. Soon after, Bumrah returned with another inquiry, gesturing toward the state of the leather after a delivery. The umpires remained firm, rejecting each of India's attempts to get the ball replaced. 

Former India head coach Ravi Shastri, who was on commentary during the sequence, weighed in on the situation. He remarked that repeatedly approaching the umpire “is not worth it” once a decision has been made, suggesting that players should move on rather than let the situation affect their focus.

“It's not worth going to the umpire. Shubman Gill should ask everyone [to] just wait for 4-5 overs, then go. This is only going to irritate the umpires further,” Shastri said.

Amid the mounting tension, India found some relief on the field. In the early minutes of the day’s play, Prasidh Krishna provided a much-needed breakthrough by dismissing Ollie Pope, who had carried England on Day 2 with a brilliant century. The pacer, who struggled the previous day, found the edge with a delivery angled outside off stump, and Pant was sharp behind the wickets to complete the catch. The wicket marked Krishna’s first of the match and briefly lifted the energy in the Indian camp.