Rishabh Pant is certainly taking his game very seriously with additional responsibilities, remarks Farokh Engineer
Former Indian wicket-keeper Farokh Engineer has heaped praise on Rishabh Pant, saying the latter seems more mature with the additional leadership duties in recent times. Pant was named India's captain for the last South Africa series and is currently working as India's vice-captain versus England.
Rishabh Pant impressed with the bat at Edgbaston during India's fifth postponed Test match versus England. The swashbuckling wicket-keeper scored a magnificent 146 off just 111 balls in the first innings and followed it up with an important 57-run knock in the second. In the process, he became the first Indian keeper to notch up a hundred and fifty in a single Test match outside the country.
Although Pant's valiant efforts are unlikely to yield rich dividends for India. By the time of writing, England reached 309/3 in pursuit of a record-breaking 378, with both Jonny Bairstow and Joe Root comfortably batting in the 90s. Still, Farokh Engineer, India's former wicket-keeper believes Pant's knocks are well worthy to remember. In fact, Engineer asserted ever since Pant started to get leadership roles, he has become a much-improved cricketer.
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Find Out“I am delighted for Rishabh. He is a fantastic cricketer. I thought maybe MS Dhoni would have done it, but I am surprised that it took so long for an Indian wicketkeeper to equal that record,” Engineer told Sportstar in an interview when spoke about Pant's feat at Edgbaston.
“I have always thought of Rishabh as a fabulous batter, and a fabulous young man, even though I have met him only once. He has got the measure and responsibility because earlier, he would throw away his wicket so many times. I used to tell myself, 'He is so talented, why doesn't he just play the right shot?' He has got such good eyes and is such a good entertainer."
Notably, Engineer became the first Indian wicket-keeper batter to score a hundred and a fifty in the same Test back in 1973 against England. However, it came at home, more precisely at the Brabourne stadium in Mumbai.