“Even for toilet, he needed someone's assistance” - Shikhar Dhawan credits Rishabh Pant’s resilience, positivity for recovery from horrific car crash
Punjab Kings captain Shikhar Dhawan has said that Rishabh Pant needed assistance even for basic tasks like going to the washroom after suffering multiple injuries in a horrific car crash in December 2022.
While saluting Pant’s resolve, the veteran cricketer opined that the keeper-batter’s positive intent has helped him overcome the tough days. Pant suffered injuries to his forehead, knee, wrist, ankle and toe after his car crashed into a divider near Roorkee in Uttarakhand. He escaped from the car - which caught fire - by breaking the windscreen and was subsequently rushed to a hospital.
In a recent interaction with Star Sports, Dhawan opened up about Pant’s recovery process following his car accident:
"He was in such pain that he wasn't even able to move or do anything for the first few months. Even for the toilet, he needed someone's assistance. From that rough phase to now, he has shown a lot of patience, positivity and tolerance, and it's a huge thing.
"It surely gave him a lot of strength, and I am sure he is going to do wonders for himself and the country," the opening batter asserted.
Having made his international debut in 2017, Pant has represented India in 33 Tests, 30 ODIs and 66 T20Is.
Excited to see Rishabh Pant back in action: Shikhar Dhawan
On Tuesday, March 12, the BCCI released a statement to confirm that Pant is fit to play as a wicketkeeper-batter in the upcoming IPL 2024.
“After undergoing an extensive 14-month rehab and recovery process, following a life-threatening road mishap on December 30th, 2022, near Roorkee, Uttarakhand, Rishabh Pant has now been declared fit as a wicket-keeper batter for the upcoming TATA IPL 2024,” BCCI’s medical update on the Delhi cricketer said.
Reacting to the big news, Dhawan said that he's excited to see the aggressive batter back in action.
"I am very happy and excited to see Rishabh back in action. He has survived such a serious accident, all thanks to God. In this last one year, he has worked so hard and shown such positive intent." Dhawan commented.
Pant, who will lead Delhi Capitals in IPL 2024, has played 98 games in the T20 league, scoring 2,838 runs at a strike rate of 147.97, with one hundred and 15 fifties.