3 Rishabh Pant shots that defied the laws of physics
Rishabh Pant is, at present, one of the most exciting players in world cricket. His performance during the 2020-21 Border-Gavaskar Trophy, particularly the Gabba Test, was his "claim to fame" moment in the international arena.
Pant has a penchant for playing his natural game, regardless of the match scenario. His clutch performances have helped India to some of their most famous victories in the last couple of years.
We take a look at three shots played by the swashbuckling southpaw that defied the laws of physics.
#1 Second T20I - India vs West Indies, Eden Gardens, February 2022
WOW Rishabh Pant asks for the heavy bat & smacks Holder for that trademark one handed six! Tooo good! 🇮🇳👌
#CricketTwitter #IndvsWI #IndVWI
India were playing West Indies in Kolkata in the second match of the series, coming off a win in the first T20I at the same venue. This time, however, the top-order did not look at their fluent best. Even Virat Kohli ended up slowing down against spinners after attacking the pacers in the powerplay overs.
Rishabh Pant walked in after Suryakumar Yadav's dismissal and batted with aggressive intent right from the start of his innings. In the first ball of the 19th over, he swung hard at a full toss from Jason Holder. It was a one-handed shot that went for an 81-meter six.
He was adjudged the Player of the Match for his game-changing 52* (28) in a match that went down to the wire. India won the match by just nine runs and sealed the series 2-0.
#2 Super 12s - India vs Pakistan, Dubai, T20 World Cup 2021
T20 World Cup, India vs Pakistan: Rishabh Pant smokes Hasan Ali for one-handed six, Virat Kohli watches in awe
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India were struggling against arch-rivals Pakistan in this all-important T20 World Cup match. Pakistan dismissed Rohit Sharma, KL Rahul and Suryakumar Yadav within the powerplay. Pant walked in to bat in the sixth over of the innings, joining captain Virat Kohli.
The two stabilized the innings in the middle overs after the initial collapse. Even though Rishabh Pant is a naturally attacking batter, he took time to settle in this crucial game against Pakistan. He was on 22 runs off 24 balls at one point.
In the second ball of the 12th over, Hasan Ali bowled a length ball at his body. Pant premeditated the shot and went down on one knee. He hit a one-handed six, whipping it over the square leg boundary.
Unfortunately, India would go on to lose to Pakistan for the first time ever in a World Cup game.
#3 IPL 2019 - Delhi Capitals vs Mumbai Indians, Wankhede
2019 being a World Cup year meant that quite a few players started performing to the best of their abilities, whenever they got the opportunity, before the squad selection.
Rishabh Pant was one of the contenders for the World Cup squad. He had a mind-blowing IPL season in 2018. So there were high expectations from him to perform well in the tournament.
Delhi Capitals were up against the Mumbai Indians. Rishabh Pant looked in imperious touch against a good MI bowling unit. He scored 78* off just 27 deliveries – a strike rate of almost 300. He hit seven fours and sixes apiece during his blitzkrieg at the crease.
Jasprit Bumrah looked to be in good form as well, getting rid of Axar Patel in the 19th over. He then bowled a full delivery on the stumps, which Pant managed to dispatch over deep square leg for a six. The left-handed 'helicopter-shot' left Wankhede awestruck with the audacity of this youngster.
The Capitals won the fixture by 37 runs as Pant's score propelled them to a mammoth 213/6.