India’s assistant coach Ryan ten Doeschate on Thursday (July 17) confirmed that wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant is getting closer to attaining full fitness ahead of the fourth Test match against England, starting from July 23 at Old Trafford.

Notably, Pant suffered a finger injury after diving to pick up the ball on Day 1 of the third Test at Lord’s. Subsequently, he had to leave the field for medical attention and skipped keeping duties for the rest of the match.

Despite the injury, the southpaw batted in both innings and played a brilliant knock of 74 in the first innings.

“He will bat in Manchester before the Test. Look, I don't think it's going to keep Rishabh out of the Test, no matter what,” ten Doeschate told reporters.

“He batted with quite a lot of pain in the third Test, and it’s only going to get easier and easier on his finger,” the Dutchman added.

The assistant coach, however, said whether Pant will don the gloves or not is a decision the team still needs to make.

“Keeping is obviously the last part of the process to make sure that he can keep. We don’t want to go through that again, where we have to replace the keeper after three innings.

“But yeah, he rested today. He’s trying to give the finger as long as possible, and hopefully he’s good to go in Manchester,” he said.

Meanwhile, Ryan ten Doeschate also shared an update on Jasprit Bumrah’s availability for the penultimate Test match.

Bumrah was rested for the second Test against England at Edgbaston to manage his workload. On his return at Lord’s, the ace pacer returned with a five-wicket haul in England’s first innings.

The plan was always going to make Bumrah play three Tests and head coach Gautam Gambhir had said that it won't be altered despite the loss in the series opener at Headingley.

“No, we’ll make that call in Manchester,” ten Doeschate said in the presser. “We’ve got him for one of the last two Tests, and it’s pretty obvious with the series on the line — Manchester — so there will be a leaning towards playing him.

“But again, if we look at all the factors — you know, how many days of cricket are we going to get up there? What do we feel is our best chance of winning that game? And then how that fits in together with the Oval, and looking at the last two games holistically as part of the series,” he stated.

Ever since Jasprit Bumrah sustained a back spasm in the Sydney Test against Australia, the Indian team management has been extra careful about managing his workload.

As a result of that injury, he missed the ICC Champions Trophy 2025 and the initial few matches of the IPL 2025 season for Mumbai Indians.

Ahead of the England tour, Bumrah revealed that he himself requested the BCCI not to consider him for Test captaincy after Rohit Sharma's retirement, as he would not be able to play all five Tests due to workload management.

Ryan ten Doeschate also defended India’s decision to not play Bumrah due to workload management.

“We have our own strengths. We know what particularly Jasprit does in spells — in shorter spells, which he prefers bowling in,” he said.