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Cricket has found its another star. A star that is shining in all its glory and is set to capture the imagination of not just India, but perhaps, the entire world. Rishabh Pant, the Delhi lad, who has had some amazing innings in a short time is all set for a dynamic career in Indian & International Cricket.
Dedicated, humble, and superbly talented, we are excited to see him breaking records and bringing home some sweet victories. With the future so bright, we decided to glimpse into Rishabh Pant’s life story and understand the qualities that make him a champ!
| Details | |
|---|---|
| Full Name | Rishabh Pant |
| Age | 23 years [As of March 2021] |
| Sport Category | Cricket ( Wicketkeeper Batsman) |
| Date of Birth | 4th October 1997 |
| Hometown | Roorkee, Uttarakhand |
| Height | 1.70 m |
| Coach | Tarak Sinha |
| Networth | $4.5 Million |
| Parent | Saroj Pant, Rajendra Pant |
| ODI Debut | vs West Indies at Barsapara Cricket Stadium, Oct 21, 2018 |
| Test Debut | vs England at Trent Bridge, Aug 18, 2018 |
| Batting Style | Left Handed Bat |
| Teams Played for | Delhi, India U19, Delhi Capitals, India, India A, North Zone, India Blue, India Red, Indian Board Presidents XI, Asia XI |
| IPL Debut | vs Gujarat Lions at Arun Jaitley Stadium, Apr 27, 2016 |
| Captain | Delhi Capitals [IPL-2021] |
Born and brought up in Roorkee, Uttarakhand, Rishabh was fascinated with cricket right from childhood. Due to a lack of infrastructural opportunities, Rishabh had to move from one city to another. When he was 12 years old, his parents decided to move to Delhi. Here, Rishabh got an opportunity to train under Tarak Sinha.
Sinha had previously trained Indian cricketer Shikhar Dhawan. Sinha’s guidance helped Rishabh to develop a solid base. Later, he moved to Rajasthan to participate in the district-level tournaments. Rishabh was treated as an outsider there and came back to Delhi to finish his schooling.
Soon, Rishabh made his first-class debut. He had just turned 18 then and kicked off his debut with a half-century.
Rishabh was a clear player for India at the ICC U-19 World Cup. His three consecutive fifties and 78 off 24 balls against Nepal helped him take the team to the finals. He also scored 111 off 96 balls against Namibia. Though India U-19 lost the finals, Rishabh’s performance stood out and a potential star was born.
Everything was working very well for Rishabh when he received a huge blow. His father, Rajendra Pant passed away due to a cardiac arrest in 2017. Rishabh’s father was his biggest supporter and losing him affected Rishabh a lot. However, he wasn’t going to sit and cry, he decided to perform even better for his father. He made a half-century in just 33 balls and displayed immense professionalism.
Rishabh was bought by the Delhi Daredevils for a staggering amount of Rs. 1.9 crore in 2016. He proved to be absolutely worth the money by scoring 198 runs in 10 matches.
Players with some of the cricketing legends have truly been an enriching experience for Rishabh. In an interview with the India Times, he said-
“It helps a lot. They have played the game at the very highest level and won everything there is to win. Their experience and insights are great to learn from. (But) It is ultimately about going out there and playing the game the best way that you can. And none of them will ever tell you to change your style.”
This guidance is sure to benefit Rishabh tremendously.
In the 2017 edition of the league, Rishabh scored a blazing 97 runs from just 43 balls to guide Delhi Daredevils to victory against the Gujarat Lions.
Rishabh Pant dd
Rishabh continued his stellar run with a stunning 128 not out from 63 balls in the 2018 edition of the league. It earned him the distinction of achieving the highest individual score by an Indian cricketer in a Twenty20 match.
It isn’t surprising then that he was awarded the ‘Emerging Player of the Season’ in 2018. He was also the second-highest run-scorer in the edition of the league.
Pravin Amre, Delhi Daredevils’ assistant coach, was talking about Rishabh to ESPN in an interview.
He said, “He would achieve his targets effortlessly. His bat swing is very good and the power with which he hits is eye-catching. Rishabh did very well in our practice games and we had planned then to use him properly in the IPL.”
In the year 2021, the 14th season of the IPL, it brought a huge responsibility and an opportunity for the 23-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman. Delhi Capitals captain Shreyas Iyer had to drop out of the team due to a shoulder injury. Consequently, the Delhi Capitals team management showed trust in its youth policy and gave Rishabh Pant the opportunity to lead the side. This is to be noted that Rishabh got the captaincy above of the experienced players like Steve Smith, Shikhar Dhawan, and R. Ashwin.
| Batting and Fielding | Mat | No | Runs | HS | Ave | BF | SR | 100 | 50 | 4s | 6s | CT | ST |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Career | 68 | 9 | 2079 | 128* | 35.23 | 1,368 | 151.97 | 1 | 12 | 183 | 103 | 46 | 11 |
| 2020 | 14 | 3 | 343 | 56 | 31.18 | 301 | 113.95 | 0 | 1 | 31 | 9 | 13 | 0 |
| 2019 | 16 | 3 | 488 | 78* | 37.53 | 300 | 162.66 | 0 | 3 | 37 | 27 | 18 | 6 |
| 2018 | 14 | 1 | 684 | 128* | 52.61 | 394 | 173.60 | 1 | 5 | 68 | 37 | 4 | 2 |
| 2017 | 14 | 0 | 366 | 97 | 26.14 | 221 | 165.61 | 0 | 2 | 28 | 24 | 8 | 3 |
| 2016 | 10 | 2 | 198 | 69 | 24.75 | 152 | 130.26 | 0 | 1 | 19 | 6 | 3 | 0 |
It isn’t surprising that his exploits in the U-19 World Cup and IPL earned him a place in the Indian squad. He made his debut against England in a Twenty20 International match in 2017. His Test debut followed in August 2018 and his ODI debut in October 2018. Test debut was against England and ODI debut was against the West Indies.
“I prefer one-day cricket but my sir [Sinha] doesn’t consider anyone an international player until he plays a Test. For sir, I have to play Test cricket. I also want to play Tests. In our club, only Test players are called ‘country’ players by sir,” Pant told ESPNcricinfo in Mumbai.
Image Source: Hindustan Times
Rishabh became the 291st Indian test cricket player in August 2018. Though the young lad couldn’t impress with his bat, he more than made up with his fielding. He took not one, nor two, but five stunning catches! with this achievement against England in Trent Bridge, Rishabh joined the illustrious list of Naren Tamhane, Kiran More, and Naman Ojha, who hold the same record. He did make a sizzling start by hitting a six on the first ball.
“I was nervous. Everyone is nervous when they play their first match. (But) when I see the ball, I don’t think too much, just react to it. I was playing normal cricket,” he told the Hindustan Times.
Rishabh Pant registered his name in cricket books with a solid finish as he scored a masterful 89 off 138 balls. He remained unbeaten to lead India to a historic 3 wicket win. Rishabh’s performance helped team India beat Australia at the Gabba. Yes, no team had beaten the hosts at the Gabba in 31 years! But that record stands shattered thanks to Pant.
“This one of my biggest days in life. The support the team has given me even when I was not playing has been incredible. It’s a dream come true. We’ve been practicing hard after the first Test. The team management always backs me and tells me you are a match-winner and you have to go out there and win and I am happy I did it today. It was a fifth-day pitch and the ball was turning,” Pant said after hitting India’s winning runs.
“I play according to the merit of the ball. It’s important to back your natural game but you have to keep the situation in mind too. As I scored a century in the last match, it came after 150-odd deliveries. You can’t play every ball aggressively,” he told India TV News.
Rishabh likes to keep his basic style of playing the same for all tournaments. His fearless hitting has made him very popular among the masses. Fortunately for Rishabh, his game is very natural and he doesn’t have to exert himself too much for a forceful shot. His bat swing is superb and it isn’t surprising that bowlers are nervous when bowling to him.
Of course, getting that perfect swing took a lot of work. Rishabh focused on his basics and slowly developed his technique. He tended to try and hit only sixes initially, but now he is going beyond raw, power-hitting.
Batting Career Summary
| M | Inn | NO | Runs | HS | Avg | BF | SR | 100 | 200 | 50 | 4s | 6s | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Test | 20 | 33 | 3 | 1358 | 159 | 45.27 | 1900 | 71.47 | 3 | 0 | 6 | 145 | 33 |
| ODI | 18 | 16 | 0 | 529 | 78 | 33.06 | 463 | 114.25 | 0 | 0 | 3 | 48 | 21 |
| T20I | 32 | 29 | 5 | 512 | 65 | 21.33 | 415 | 123.37 | 0 | 0 | 2 | 39 | 21 |
| IPL | 68 | 68 | 9 | 2079 | 128 | 35.24 | 1368 | 151.97 | 1 | 0 | 12 | 183 | 103 |
The estimated net worth of Rishabh is approximately $4.5 Million/Rs. 33 crore as of 2021.
It is good to see Rishabh learning a lot from Virat Kohli. The dashing captain is one of the best cricketers in the world, and Rishabh is lucky to be part of Virat’s team. Virat has time and again appreciated Rishabh.
Rishabh believes in doing out-of-the-box things and surprises himself. This is just the beginning, he has a long way to go. With his immense talent and discipline, nothing can stop him from being an excellent wicket-keeper batsman.
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