3 times Rishabh Pant entertained us with his dance moves
It isn't a stretch to consider Rishabh Pant as the most exciting cricketer on the planet today. The 24-year old wicketkeeper-batter continues to create ripples around the globe with his enterprising brand of cricket, casting himself as a superstar in the making.
In a short span of time, the southpaw has assumed big responsibility as well, captaining the Delhi Capitals (DC) in the IPL. He also led India during the five-match T20I rubber against South Africa in June earlier this year and was Jasprit Bumrah's deputy for the rescheduled fifth Test against England in Birmingham.
His cricketing prowess aside, he remains quite the entertainer and that has won him a cult fan following across the globe. Be it his humorous quips from behind the stumps or his banter with the opposition, he always finds a way to amuse all and sundry.
He seems to have a thing for dancing too, having shaken a leg with his teammates in times gone by.
Let's take a look at three such instances in this piece.
#1 Vaathi Coming with the Delhi Capitals
Tamil chartbuster "Vaathi Coming" became a rage amongst the cricketing fraternity, with the likes of Ravichandran Ashwin, Hardik Pandya and David Warner shaking a leg to it.
Pant wasn't to be left behind either, as he joined his Delhi Capitals (DC) teammates Chris Woakes, Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Steve Smith and Ashwin in a jig at the start of their IPL 2021 campaign.
The skipper's amusing steps were and energy was reflective of the positive vibe within the camp. Unsurprisingly, the video went viral on the internet soon after.
#2 "Bahut tagda bhi karne ki zaroorat nahi hai" - Pant, the Bhangra teacher
Fast-forward a year and the DC skipper was back at it during IPL 2022. This time, he turned Bhangra teacher to Axar Patel, Shardul Thakur and Kuldeep Yadav during one of the behind-the-scenes shoot days.
Bhangra 101 ft. DC Stars 🕺🏻
Suggest a song for them to put their practice into action 🎶💬
#YehHaiNayiDilli | #IPL2022 | @RishabhPant17 | @imkuldeep18 | @imShard | @akshar2026 | @TajMahalMumbai
#TATAIPL | #IPL | #DelhiCapitals https://t.co/4saZ8bmByQ
He was seen leading the way and tutoring Axar in particular over how to keep it simple rather than trying too hard.
In a video posted by the Capitals' official Twitter handle, he was seen saying:
"...bahut tagda bhi karne ki zaroorat nahi hai, aise bhi karega toh chalega. (...you don't have to try hard. If you do it this way, it's also fine.)"
It was a heartwarming sight that reflected a happy team, more so when one factors in the sudden outbreak of COVID-19 cases within the DC camp. The southpaw is clearly a leader on and off the field, isn't he?
#3 Grooves to the Bharat Army's song
One of the earliest instances of Pant developing a cult fan base dates back to the Sydney Test of the 2018-19 Border-Gavaskar Trophy.
Throughout the series, the wicketkeeper's constant chirps and banter were caught on the stump mic, leaving the audience in splits.
Tim Paine asking his counterpart to babysit his kids and the latter posing with them thereafter is well-documented. At the conclusion of the final Test, the Bharat Army started chanting the famous 'We've got Rishabh Pant' song during the presentation ceremony.
The man in question enjoyed every bit of it and broke into a dance of his own that was received with a huge roar. Fellow members of the Indian team couldn't hide their grins either. He's quite simply the darling of the masses alright!
What is your favorite Rishabh Pant dance moment? Let us know in the comments section below!
Also Read: 3 instances of Rishabh Pant pleading with his captain to take DRS that left us in splits