India wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant had met with a life-threatening car accident in December 2022, and had to undergo multiple surgeries and intensive rehab and recovery.
After spending a lot of time regaining his strength and skills back, the southpaw made his return in IPL 2024, where he captained Delhi Capitals and scored 443 runs in 13 matches to regain his place in the national side.
Pant has been a key player for the Indian team in the ongoing T20 World Cup, delivering crucial performances with the bat at No. 3. He has also impressed everyone with his keeping skills.
With India having qualified for the Super 8 round of the T20 World Cup, Pant is already considered by many as the side's X-factor for the rest of the tournament.
Speaking to Star Sports ahead of India's last group-stage match against Canada on June 15, former cricketer-turned-commentator Ravi Shastri opened up on Rishabh Pant’s dedication in order to make a strong comeback.
"I think he (Rishabh) has been most impressive, batting everybody new. But his keeping range of movement has been fabulous. As he said, 'Not often do you get two opportunities. God doesn't give you two opportunities to live'. It's literally God telling him, You're too young to come upstairs. Why don't you stay downstairs, play your cricket, and we'll see you later, and he's given him that opportunity. He's realised that, and he's worked his backside off," Shastri said.
“For me, the first impression when I saw Rishabh was all trimmed up. Ricky (Ponting) mentioned he was with DC and that he was carrying his own chef. So it is that awareness that he has come to play at the highest level and come back and do the things he was doing, or even better. He's got to work really, really hard. So realisation has sunk in, and it's made all the difference and is fabulous. You can see what X factor he brings in with the bat, I thought his keeping has been that that's something that surprised everyone. Especially the footwork, the way he's moving behind the stump... Not easy. 18 months before, when you saw him in hospital, you know, you would never have imagined he would come back and play," he added.
In three innings at the T20 World Cup so far, Rishabh Pant has registered scores of 36* (26 balls), 42 (31 balls) and 18 (20 balls) against Ireland, Pakistan and USA respectively.
Having done well on tough wickets in New York, the wicketkeeper-batter is expected to be India’s key batter during the Super 8 stage in the Caribbean.
