What Rishabh Pant has done in the last two months, many don't in a lifetime: Ravi Shastri
Indian head coach Ravi Shastri went gaga over Rishabh Pant for what the youngster has achieved in Test cricket, especially in the past few months.
In six Tests in 2021 so far, Rishabh Pant has averaged an outstanding 64.37, scoring 515 runs. While he has only one century to show for his efforts, Rishabh Pant did play a few match-defining innings. Be it his blistering 97 in Sydney, which helped India save the Test, or his unbeaten 89 at the Gabba, which sealed a famous win for the visitors, the 23-year-old has been simply sensational.
In a press conference after the end of the India-England Test series, Ravi Shastri said that Rishabh Pant has achieved something at such a young age, which not many do during their entire careers.
"I think what he has done in the past two months, winning games for India, there will be players who won't do it in a lifetime and would have never done it in a lifetime. At the age of 23 to pull off magic and work as hard as he has, he is reaping the rewards," Ravi Shastri said.
Rishabh Pant had lost his place in the Indian white-ball teams after a dismal IPL 2020 campaign. But the youngster worked on his fitness, something that has paid him rich dividends in terms of his confidence and on-field performances.
"After the IPL, Rishabh Pant came in with a lot of baggage, and that showed in his size. He worked his backside off to lose it. He has trained as hard as anyone in the last two months, and the results are not just for him but the world to see," Shastri noted.
Rishabh Pant apart, Ravi Shastri also praises Washington Sundar
Ravi Shastri also lauded the efforts of all-rounder Washington Sundar with the bat. After just four Tests, the 21-year-old averages an impressive 66.25, despite batting at no. 8 or lower.
He impressed one and all on his Test debut at the Gabba in Brisbane, where he scored a fabulous 62 in the first innings, which turned the game on its head. Ravi Shastri hailed the Tamil Nadu youngster for his composure in tough situations.
"Washington Sundar, unbelievable composure and temperament. To see that body language, unfazed by the toughest bowlers in the world, in challenging situations like in Brisbane and Chennai, was unreal," Ravi Shastri asserted.
However, the Indian coach believes Sundar's 96* in Ahmedabad in the fourth Test was his best so far.
The youngster walked out to bat with the hosts six down and more than 50 runs in arrears. Although Rishabh Pant scored a brilliant 101, Sundar's innings deserved as much credit, according to Shastri.
"This was an even better innings than (the one in) Brisbane. You are playing at home, the World Test Championship is on the line, you are 50 runs behind the opposition. But these youngsters are not thinking on those lines. They are playing normal, fearless cricket," Shastri added.
Thanks to the exploits of the youngsters, Team India have now qualified for the final of ICC World Test Championship, where they will take on New Zealand in June this year.