England, struggling to accumulate points in the ongoing World Cup, faced India in a critical match. In an attempt to chase down India’s target, the English team encountered a challenging start, losing all of their top-order batsmen except for Rohit Sharma, with the scoreboard showing only 40 runs.
As KL Rahul and Rohit worked on rebuilding the innings, India appeared to regain their footing on the sluggish surface in Lucknow. Nevertheless, England managed to make a comeback by dismissing both well-set batsmen in the span of six overs. The most noteworthy incident of the game, however, was not a wicket but rather a fielder writhing in pain on the ground while clutching his knee.
Rohit reached his fifty in the 24th over, but he began to struggle in scoring quick runs as the English bowlers maintained good line and length. After hitting a boundary in the 30th over, Rohit went through an unusual dry spell where he found it difficult to find the boundary, increasing the pressure to attempt a risky shot.
That moment arrived on the fifth ball of the 37th over when he decided to take on Adil Rashid’s delivery. The English bowler bowled a deceptive wrong ‘un that tempted Rohit, but he failed to connect properly with the ball. Nevertheless, the ball soared towards deep midwicket, where Liam Livingstone tried to complete a routine sliding catch.
— Shamsi sinha (@SSinha23546) October 29, 2023
Livingstone successfully held onto the catch, but as he landed, his right knee became trapped in the turf, causing him to stumble and leaving him in obvious pain. The replays depicted the severity of the injury, highlighting the potential danger if there had been no sliding involved. Social media users expressed their dissatisfaction with the playing surface, and Twitter was inundated with posts criticizing the field conditions in Lucknow. It was undoubtedly a painful moment for Livingstone!