Former Indian captain and cricket legend Sunil Gavaskar praised Rishabh Pant for his brilliant century on Day 2 of the first Test between India and England at Headingley, Leeds. Pant reached his hundred in style, hitting a six off the very first ball of the 100th over bowled by Shoaib Bashir. He followed it up with his signature somersault celebration to mark the milestone.
“Superb, superb, superb. Absolutely terrific batting by the young man,” Gavaskar said on air, as Rishabh Pant got to his hundred.
Gavaskar’s “Superb, superb, superb” remark stands out as a special praise for Pant, especially considering his past criticism during the Australia tour. Back then, after Pant got out playing a reckless shot in one of the Tests, Sunil Gavaskar had sharply reacted on air, saying, “Stupid! Stupid! Stupid!”
At the time of writing, Rishabh Pant remains unbeaten on 118 from 159 deliveries, including 11 boundaries and six sixes. After centuries from Yashasvi Jaiswal and Shubman Gill on Day 1, Pant has now become the third Indian batter to reach triple figures in this innings.
Rishabh Pant Sets Record For Most Test Centuries By An Indian Wicketkeeper
Rishabh Pant struck his seventh Test century during the first Test against England in Leeds, moving past MS Dhoni’s record for the most Test hundreds by an Indian wicketkeeper. Before this innings, Pant and Dhoni were tied with six centuries each. Dhoni, who had scored six Test tons in his career, now sits second on the list, followed by Wriddhiman Saha with three.
With senior players like Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli missing from the lineup, the onus was on younger batters such as Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill, KL Rahul, and Pant — all of whom have stepped up in the opening match.
Pant also surpassed Dhoni’s tally for the most runs by an Indian wicketkeeper-batter in SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand, Australia) countries. Dhoni had scored 1731 runs in these regions at an average of 31.47.
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