India captain Virat Kohli had a lot of praise for Rishabh Pant, who put up an improved show with the gloves during the second Test against England in Chennai. Pant, who in the past has been questioned about his wicketkeeping skills, did not miss a single opportunity affecting four dismissals in the match. Besides, the way he kept against R Ashwin and Axar Patel was equally remarkable.
In the first innings, Pant took a couple of brilliant one-handed catches to dismiss England batsmen Ollie Pope and Jack Leach. Later, in the second innings, Pant pulled off a stunning stumping off the bowling of R Ashwin to dismiss overnight batsman Daniel Lawrence for 29 on Day 4. Ashwin bowled it wide outside leg and with Lawrence outside his crease, Pant collected the ball sharply and in a lightning quick reflex, took the bails off to result in the wicket. He fashioned another stumping of Moeen Ali, the final England wicket to fall.
Pant's improvement as a keeper is not an overnight development, with Kohli stating how the 23-year-old has been working extensively on his keeping since the tour of Australia.
"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," Kohli said pf pant during the post-match presentation ceremony.
{{/usCountry}}"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," Kohli said pf pant during the post-match presentation ceremony.
{{/usCountry}}A reason behind his resurgence as a wicketkeeper could also boil down to the amazing batting form Pant finds himself in. Ever since he was included in the Test team against Australia in the second Test in MCG, Pant has been in blistering form with the bat. His knock of 97 played a vital role in India escaping with a famous draw at the SCG and days later, Pant played the most incredible innings of his career when his unbeaten 89 guided India to a memorable three-wicket win at the Gabba.
Pant continued his fine form on Indian soil. In the first Test, he blasted a counter-attacking 91 to help revive India's innings and followed it with a sixth Test fifty in second game. He remained unbeaten on 56 at one end but his innings was instrumental in India going past 300 in the first dig.