Indian cricket Icon Sachin Tendulkar heaped praise on Test debutant Rishabh Pant and all-rounder Hardik Pandya for their “fantastic” show in the third Test against England on Sunday (19 August).

At Trent Bridge in Nottingham, India made a superb comeback and Pant and Pandya were the catalyst for India to help the touring side reach a dominant position in the third Test after the second day of the Trent Bridge Test.

On Sunday, Pant became the first Indian batsman to open his Test cricket account with a six and the first Asian, third keeper in history, as well as, the fourth Indian wicket-keeper to take five catches on Test debut. Pandya on the other hand, picked up five-wickets to help India to bowled England out at 168 in the first innings.

The all-rounder came into the Test series with extra pressure following Lord’s Test, but he produced a masterclass in swing bowling, putting the ball in the right areas and leave the England batsmen clueless. It was an inspired spell which came after former cricket experts questioned his role in the Indian Test team. 

Tendulkar took to Twitter to laud the duo on social media, wrote, “Fantastic cricket, both in front and behind the wickets. Congratulations @hardikpandya7 and @RishabPant777 on your respective 5 wicket hauls! Let’s nip this in the bud now. #ENGvIND”

At the moment, India is leading with 292-runs with eight wickets in hand in the second innings, which shows that England are unable to make a comeback in the third Test and Virat Kohli and Co. would certainly like to continue dominating the hosts and win the third encounter.

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