IND vs NZ: "Where's Hotspot?" - AB De Villiers Reacts to Controversial Rishabh Pant Dismissal in Mumbai Test

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Rishabh Pant looked well on course to take India to victory over New Zealand in the third Test at the Wankhede Stadium in Mumbai, but a controversial of the wicketkeeper-batter resulted in the home team's defeat.

Chasing 147, India suffered an early collapse, losing five wickets in a hurry. But the Pant fought a lone battle to take India within reach of the target, playing a brilliant counter-attacking knock of 64 runs from 57 balls.

The Indian wicketkeeper-batter stood firm despite losing partners and took the attack to the New Zealand bowlers. However, a contorversial call by the third umpire turned the match, and also triggered a debate on social media.

New Zealand appealed for a bat-pad caught behind, but the umpire remained unmoved. New Zealand skipper Tom Latham remained unconvinced, but Patel and the other close-in fielders, including wicketkeeper Tom Blundell got him to review the decision.

A thorough assessment followed by the TV umpire, and a spike was witnessed on the snicko meter when the ball passed the bat. However, at he same time, Pant's bat had also hit his pads.

Despite the confusion, the third umpire decided to overturn the onfield decision and declared Pant has out caught behind. This led to mixed reactions on social media as former South Africa wicketkeeper-batter questioned why there is no use of hotspot technology in the series.

"Controversy! Little grey area once again. Did Pant get bat on that or not? Problem is when the ball passes the bat at exactly the same time a batter hits his pad snicko will pick up the noise. But how sure are we he hit it? I've always worried about this and here it happens at a huge moment in a big Test match. Where's hotspot?!", De Villiers posted on X.

While another user on X felt there is no controversy citing that there was a deflection off the bat before the ball hit the pad and ballooned up in the air as Blundell safely pouched the catch.

The debate continued as India lost the remaining three wickets in a hurry as New Zealand claimed a historic white-wash against the hosts. Post-match, one user claimed former India captain Anil Kumble explained why hotspot is not being used in the Test series.