'He has to be my go-to man': Apprentice Rishabh Pant puts over master MS Dhoni after Delhi Capitals' big win

Pant faced a lot of comparisons with Dhoni in his early cricketing days. Pant has also been mentored by Dhoni throughout his young career, and after the match, the Delhi cricketer described the CSK skipper as his 'go-to man'.

The apprentice Rishabh Pant won the battle against his master MS Dhoni as Delhi Capitals pulled off a superb seven-wicket win against Chennai Super Kings on Saturday. Pant started his career at a time when Dhoni was about to retire from international cricket.

Rishabh Pant and MS Dhoni.(IPL)

With both wicketkeeper-batsmen known for their hard-hitting cricket, Pant faced a lot of comparisons with Dhoni in his early cricketing days. Pant has also been mentored by Dhoni throughout his young career, and after the match, the Delhi cricketer described the CSK skipper as his 'go-to man'.

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Speaking at the post-match presentation ceremony, Pant said that going down for toss with Dhoni in his first match as captain in IPL was a special moment for him

"It was actually special for me captaining my first match in IPL and the toss is against MS Dhoni. I have always learnt from him. If I have any problems, I go to him. He is my go-to man. It's a good feeling, I guess," Pant said.

Speaking of the match, Pant admitted he felt under pressure when Suresh Raina and Moeen Ali were hammering DC bowlers for boundaries.

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"It always feels good when you get the win in the end. In the middle phase, I was under some pressure. But Avesh and Tom (Curran) did well in the middle to restrict them to 188," he said.

Pant also praised Shikhar Dhawan and Prithvi Shaw for their performances with the bat. While Dhawan scored 85 runs, Shaw hammered 72 to set up DC's easy win.

"Prithvi and Shikhar did well for us in the powerplay. They kept it simple and played some good cricketing shots," Pant signed off.