Past Indian National Cricket Team player Ajay Jadeja recently highlighted a Rohit Sharma-like trait in star wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant.
Pant finally made his Test comeback in the first game of the two-match series against Bangladesh in Chennai. He put in a stunning performance and never looked out of sorts in the longest format of the game for over 600 days.
Rishabh Pant scored 39 runs in the first innings but his runs were extremely important as India lost Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill for low scores. Shalwar stitched 62 runs along with Yashasvi Jaiswal and did not allow India to come under huge pressure.
However, he did his best in the second innings as the wicketkeeper-batsman blasted a stunning century in his comeback Test. Pant ended his innings with 109 runs from 128 balls, with 13 fours and 4 sixes, equaling MS Dhoni’s record for most tons (6) by an Indian wicketkeeper-batsman in Tests.
Meanwhile, during a discussion at Colors Cineplex, Ajay Jadeja singled out Rishabh Pant’s batting masterclass as the biggest positive for India from the first Test. He elaborated:
“If you have to pick something, I’ll pick Rishabh Pant’s knock because it has more emotions. It’s not that it makes a huge difference tactically. I think Rishabh Pant’s rare gem was Sanjay’s (Manjrekar) line. Rare gems are few and far between it also depends on how you use them.
“There was no doubt in his mind, but there was doubt in our minds, or people on the outside. It’s not uncommon for people to think average things. There was no doubt in his mind because you saw it in his game. He changed the way he used to play.
Numbers don’t matter to him – Ajay Jadeja on Rishabh Pant
Ajay Jadeja further said that Rishabh Pant is just like Rohit Sharma as he doesn’t play for milestones and only helps his team win. He said:
“He showed yesterday (Saturday) that numbers don’t matter to him. Even after scoring a century, his approach remained the same. He could have got out earlier, a catch fell, he was a bit lucky, and only brave people gets lucky.”
Ajay Jadeja also said that Rishabh Pant has always been confident and put an end to any doubts in the minds of his fans with his tone. He elaborated:
“I feel like the doubts were only in our minds or in the fans’ minds, because when you love someone, you think there’s nothing wrong with it. He’s a positive guy. Now that he’s had that start, he’s only going to get better. .
“He has yet to hit where you need him most when you can’t save the game without him. The rare thing about him is that he can always come up on the day it’s needed the most. When called upon, this rare gem will shine even brighter.”
