Be it with bat or behind the stumps, Rishabh Pant is causing a huge buzz in the cricket fraternity. His spirited batting exploits in Australia are still fresh in memories; and now, playing in his first Test series at home since 2018/19, his wicketkeeping under challenging circumstances has seen significant resurgence. India vs England 2020/21, 2nd Test: Axar Patel raises his hand
A lot has been said about Pant’s glovework since his debut. There have been debates on whether he should be donning the gloves behind the stumps, particularly with Wriddhiman Saha still around. The Indian think-tank, too, preferred Saha over Pant, especially at home, until now.
However, the tide has turned in favour of the Delhi boy during the ongoing series. His batting exploits in Australia helped him earn a place in the home series against England. And now, his batting form seems to have rubbed on to his wicketkeeping.
On a turning track during the second in Chennai, Pant’s keeping was near-flawless. Against the likes of R Ashwin, Axar Patel and Kuldeep Yadav – all of whom were getting sharp turn out of that pitch – Pant did not miss a single opportunity. Against the fast bowlers he took a couple of acrobatic one-handed stunners to get rid of Ollie Pope and Jack Leach in the first innings. Later in the match, Pant showcased quick reflexes to pull off a remarkable leg-side stumping of Dan Lawrence off Ashwin. He then stumped Moeen Ali off Kuldeep to wrap up the Test match for India.
Over these course of the two Tests, Pant didn’t seem overly keen on proving his critics wrong. He was relaxed, well-balanced, and characteristically chirpy. He channelised his batting confidence into his wicketkeeping abilities, and it reflected on his performance.
Captain Virat Kohli mentioned that Pant’s improvement with the wicketkeeping gloves has not happened overnight. It has been a result of weeks of hard work put in by the 23-year-old: “Rishabh Pant has really worked hard in Australia, when he moves with the gloves you can see the difference in his reflexes and reactions. He has shed a lot of weight and has worked hard on himself. It is showing the way he kept with so much turn and bounce, credit to him. We want him to keep improving as a keeper because we know the value he brings to the team.”
With a bat in hand, Pant is capable of turning a Test match on its head. His brand of batting is tailor-made for that. In a way, his game is ideally suited to the DNA of this Kohli-led fearless ‘New India’. But for the team, Pant mitigating all the doubts about his wicketkeeping skills to cement a place in the Test side has probably been the biggest positive to come out from the four-Test series so far.