Pant’s Critics Turn Into Huge Fans As His Love Affair With Test Series Deciders Continues

There is something about Rishabh Pant and the last innings of a Test series. The guy simply comes alive when it matters the most and transforms himself into a completely different player.

He showed exactly that in Brisbane 12 months ago and a couple of months later during the fourth and the final test match against England in Ahmedabad. These were the two knocks that made the whole world stand up and applaud.

© Rishabh Pant Instagram

In Gabba, it was his 89 not out that guided India to a historic Test series win Down Under, while in Ahmedabad, he scored the third Test century of his career in India’s second innings that helped the hosts collect crucial points and book a place in the World Test Championship (WTC) final.

The 24-year-old batter made a decent contribution with the bat in India’s second innings of the WTC final but it wasn’t enough to get the desired result.

© Rishabh Pant Instagram

The next Test series that India played in England was cancelled prematurely with a game left after a COVID-19 breakout within the Indian camp, and Pant never got the opportunity to leave his mark on the series.

Some might call it a mere coincidence but after watching Pant bat in the second innings of the series final in Cape Town, we have started to think otherwise and we are not alone. 

There are many people like us who believe that this is a pattern.

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One of the possible explanations of the same could be that the Roorkee-born wicket-keeper plays with great maturity and puts a huge prize on his wicket when there is something to play for.

When he walked into bat on the third morning, India were in a deep state of bother having lost two of their most-experienced batter Cheteshwar Pujara and Ajinkya Rahane within a span of 10 deliveries.

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It was the worst possible start India could have asked for and things were looking bleak. 

The South African pacers were right on their throat and it looked as if Indian batting would crumble like it did in Johannesburg. Because after Kohli, there was not much batting left and those who were left hadn’t scored enough runs to give the sense of security that was needed.

But Pant, who had copped with immense criticism for throwing away his wicket on multiple occasions in the series, walked in with a different mindset.

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Given India’s miserable situation, the ideal advice that anybody would have given him was to spend some time in the middle, get a hang of how the pitch was behaving and play second fiddle to the Indian skipper.

While any other batter would have taken this advice, the problem doesn’t work for a player like Pant who loves playing his shots and taking the attack to the opposition bowlers.

© Reuters

Instead of going by the book, Pant did what he knows best – attack. 

He didn’t let the match situation affect his approach and smashed a counter-attacking fifty off just 58 balls. But he wasn’t going after every ball blindly, there was a method to his madness and brought India right back in the game.

The people who were criticising him for not respecting the match situation last week, now fell short of words while praising his gem of a knock. 

Social media was flooded with countless posts as people praised the young wicket-keeper. Some called him a generational talent, others described him as one of the biggest match-winners in the longest format.

When the lights are brightest, Pressure is highest, Crowds are the loudest, The best will arrive, The strongest will survive, The greatest will thrive.
RISHABH RAJENDRA PANT pic.twitter.com/SclUZfCcKR

— Cricket Man (@OneHandSix) January 13, 2022

“Is ladke ko free hi chhod do (Leave this boy on his own). One  of the biggest match winners in Test Cricket round the world #RishabhPant,” former India opener Virender Sehwag wrote on Twitter.

Is ladke ko free hi chhod do. One of the biggest match winners in Test Cricket round the world #RishabhPant

— Virender Sehwag (@virendersehwag) January 13, 2022

If rising on important occasion is an art, than Rishabh Pant is the Picasso of it. #Rishabpant pic.twitter.com/OgeqncORal

— Guna RISHAB (@YellapuGuna) January 13, 2022

Rishabh Pant’s false shot percentage in this innings is now 8.7% – that is the lowest false shot percentage for any batsman in any innings (min 50 balls faced) this series (there are 31 such innings). He’s doing this while scoring at 5.17 runs per over. #SAvIND

— The CricViz Analyst (@cricvizanalyst) January 13, 2022

A very good half century for Rishabh Pant under pressure. Keep going lad! #SAvIND

— Chloe-Amanda Bailey (@ChloeAmandaB) January 13, 2022

Rishabh Pant showing why he’s one of the most impressive characters around. Bad shot – and bad decision – in the second Test, lambasted for it, and could easily have gone into his shell. Instead, he’s played basically the perfect counter-punch. Gun#SAvIND

— Ben Gardner (@Ben_Wisden) January 13, 2022

Patience from Kohli and natural aggression from Pant. This is a mix of Test batting at its very best. Vital in the context of the match & series.

— Bhawana (@bhawnakohli5) January 13, 2022

In his short career Pant has played some very vital knocks in really tough conditions. Long career ahead!! #INDvsSA

— Gaurav Sundararaman (@gaurav_sundar) January 13, 2022

With this knock, Pant was able to silence his critics but even he knows that his job is far from done. If India wants to win the series then he needs to bat long and convert into a big knock.