Strictly Come Dancing fans were left furious on Sunday evening after Dr Punam Krishan was eliminated following a dance-off against Shayne Ward. The GP and her partner Gorka Marquez performed their Tango again, while Shayne Ward and Nancy Xu reprised their Paso Doble. Despite it being Dr Punam's first time in the bottom two and Shayne's repeated experience, the judges chose to save the former X Factor star.
Head judge Shirley Ballas admitted she would have made the same decision. However, viewers took to social media to express their outrage. One fan posted: 'Punam was absolutely robbed. At least she danced. Gorka should have her faffing about on the spot #SCD #StrictlyComeDancing #Strictly.' Another wrote: 'Punam was absolutely robbed on #strictly shane did f**k all the whole dance.'
Others echoed the sentiment, with comments such as 'I thought Punam should have stayed. I felt that she improved on yesterday's dance' and 'Absolutely the wrong decision.' One viewer added: 'I'm really going to miss Punam and Gorka. She should be so proud of herself.'
Reflecting on her departure, Dr Punam said: 'I am really proud of myself. I've taken on something that's so out of my comfort zone. The one thing that I've very much learnt is to say yes more and that there is no point in your life when you can stop learning new skills.' Gorka praised her, saying: 'She's a GP and a Mum. She had never danced before and I think she improved week by week. I think she is truly what the show is about.'
Dr Punam had consistently ranked near the bottom of the leaderboard, with her highest score of 33 in week three. This weekend, she scored 26 for her Halloween pirate-themed routine, placing her joint bottom with comedian Chris McCausland. Strictly Come Dancing continues Saturday, November 2nd, at 6:30 p.m. on BBC One, with the results show on Sunday, November 3rd, at 7:20 p.m.
