"Bas ye tha ki do din bahut fielding ki hai, ab do din batting karni hai kaise bhi karke" - When Rishabh Pant responded with a triple hundred vs Maharashtra
Much before making it big in Test cricket, Rishabh Pant proved his potential in first-class cricket while playing for Delhi. Making his first-class debut in 2015, Pant played some significant knocks that paved his way into the Test side a few years later.
The highlight of his first-class career was the triple century against Maharashtra in the 2016-17 Ranji Trophy season at the Wankhede Stadium. In response to Maharashtra's mammoth first-innings total of 635/2, Delhi were reduced to 135/2 when Pant walked out to bat.
The southpaw then kept hitting the Maharashtra bowlers all over the park. By the time he was out for 308, Delhi were well-placed at 577. Pant batted for 468 minutes and scored at a rate of 94.47, which included 42 boundaries and nine sixes.
He also smashed a handful of records during his scintillating knock, one of which saw him become the third-youngest Indian to score a triple century in first-class cricket after Wasim Jaffer and Abhinav Mukund.
Rishabh Pant becomes the 3rd youngest Indian to score a triple-century in first-class cricket after W Jaffer and A Mukund. #RanjiTrophy
When asked later what was going through his mind while coming out to bat, the wicketkeeper-batter revealed that he wanted to make the Maharastra fielders work for as long as possible. In an interview with Scroll, Pant said:
"Bas ye tha ki do din bahut fielding ki hai, ab do din batting karni hai kaise bhi karke. Bas. (Just that after fielding for two days, I must somehow bat for two days. That’s it)."
The high-scoring match eventually ended in a draw, with the two sides sharing points in the group phase tie.
Pant has scored 3975 runs in 55 first-class matches at an average of 48.47, including 10 centuries and 18 fifties.
"With the World Cup around the corner, the whole team is slightly nervous" - Rishabh Pant
More recently, Rishabh Pant, who is now a vital cog in the Indian team, has admitted that the whole team is a bit nervous heading to the ICC T20 World Cup in Australia later this year. The Men in Blue will be eyeing nothing short of the elusive trophy after crashing out of the group stages in the last edition.
Speaking on the sidelines of an event organized by Visit Victoria on Wednesday, Pant stated:
“With the World Cup around the corner, the whole team is slightly nervous, but at the same time, as a team, we love to give our 100 percent and focus on our process. That’s the only thing we can do."
Rishabh Pant, who has been rested for the ongoing Zimbabwe series, will return to action in the upcoming Asia Cup 2022 later this month in the UAE.