‘Sorry we couldn't…’: Rishabh Pant apologizes after India’s Test whitewash against South Africa

Rishabh Pant has posted an apology after Team India faced a whitewash at home at the hands of South Africa during the recent two match Test series. Pant had led the team during the second Test after regular skipper Shubman Gill suffered a neck sprain during the first Test in Kolkata.

“There is no shying away from the fact that we didn’t play good enough cricket over the last two weeks. As a team and as individuals, we always want to perform at the highest level and bring smiles to billions of Indians. Sorry we couldn’t live up to expectations this time, but sport teaches you to learn, adapt and grow both as a team and as individuals,” Pant posted in a picture on X (formerly Twitter).

“Representing India is the greatest honour of our lives. We know what this team is capable of and we will work hard, regroup, refocus and reset to come back stronger and better as a team and individuals,” Pant further added.

India's whitewash against South Africa

Notably, the Indian team had lost a closely fought contest in Kolkata by 30 runs after they failed to chase down a total of 124 runs in the fourth innings.

In the absence of skipper Gill, the Indian team opted to have left handed Sai Sudarshan in the side. However, the young lads were completely outplayed both by bat and ball throughout the match.

South Africa posted a total of 489 runs in the first innings and went on to wrap up the Indian innings on a score of 201. The Proteas then posted another 260 runs in their second innings before declaring and giving a total of 549 for India to chase.

The Indian batters remained ineffective in the second innings and the team was bowled out for 140 runs. Notably, the 408 run defeat in Guwahati also marked India's biggest Test defeat at home.

This is also the second time in less than a year that Team India have been whitewashed in a Test series at home, the previous instance being against New Zealand last year when Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli were still part of the Indian Test setup.

India coach Gautam Gambhir has faced a lot of criticism since the defeat, and the former cricketer was quick to point out that he was also at the helm when the team won the 2025 Champions Trophy and the Asia Cup.