Rishabh Pant smashed a quick-fire 88 against England in the first innings at Chepauk.
India wicket-keeper batsman Rishabh Pant played a destructive knock of 91 runs off just 88 deliveries in the first Test against England. Pant has been in terrific touch with the bat lately and he carried on his form from Australia.
The southpaw was taking on the spinners for fun and he hit five sixes along with 9 fours in his innings. Unfortunately, he missed out on a well-deserving hundred after handing over a catch off Dom Bess' bowling, who earlier dismissed Virat Kohli and Ajinkya Rahane.
Former England captain Nasser Hussain praised Pant for his knock in his recent column for the popular British tabloid Daily Mail. He went on to highlight the difference between Pant and MS Dhoni's batting.
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"Mahendra Singh Dhoni, one of his predecessors as India’s wicket-keeper, was a very smart cricketer and that is what he would have done," he wrote.
"Dhoni was a different style of cricketer in that he played the situation, whereas Pant plays a lot more by the seat of his pants — if you excuse the expression. Dhoni went ballistic as a last resort. For Pant, it is the first course of action."
Pant could have easily got his hundred had he not continued the attacking batting in the 90s. But that's how he plays without thinking much about anything other than smashing the ball.
"Rishabh Pant is an incredible, game-changing talent. Arguably a series-changing talent," Hussain wrote.
"If he hadn’t batted in his no-fear style, if he lacked any self-belief, then India would not have won that match in Brisbane last month that completed their greatest ever series victory."
"Yesterday, it made for much more exciting viewing to have Pant playing that kind of innings. But don’t confuse him for somebody who simply has a slog. Until his dismissal, he had left deliveries from Dom Bess outside the off stump expertly and very rarely used his feet against him."
(With Daily Mail Inputs)