“Pehla thought mereko aaya ki ye bhai gaya” - Axar Patel feared the worst on hearing of Rishabh Pant’s accident
Rishabh Pant’s India and Delhi Capitals (DC) teammate Axar Patel has stated that he feared the worst the first time he heard of the keeper-batter’s horrific car accident.
The cricket fraternity and fans woke up to the shocking news of the Indian stumper's accident on December 30, 2022. Pant suffered multiple injuries in a horrific car accident as the vehicle he was driving crashed into a divider on the Delhi-Dehradun highway.
In a video posted on Delhi Capitals’ X handle, Axar recalled his first thoughts on learning of his franchise skipper’s accident. He said:
"Subah 7 ya 8 baje mere phone pe ring baji. Pratima di (Ishant Sharma’s wife) ka phone aya. Pratima di ne mujhe pucha ki 'teri Rishabh se kab baat hui thi last?' Mene bola 'nahi, kal karne wala tha lekin kal nahi ki mene'. 'Are uski mummy ka number ho toh mereko send kar, uska accident ho gaya hai'. Matlab pehla thought mereko aaya ki ye bhai gaya.
(Early morning, I got a call from Pratima di [Ishant Sharma’s wife]. She asked me when I last spoke to Pant. I told her that I was about to talk to him yesterday, but I did not. She asked for Pant's mother's contact number as he had met with an accident. At that point, I feared the worst).”
Due to the injuries Pant suffered in the car accident, he had to undergo a surgery. In a recent interview, he admitted that he was lucky to survive the shocking car crash.
“I know he is a fighter” - Axar on Pant
In the same DC video, Axar also revealed that he received calls from Shardul Thakur and even the BCCI as everyone felt he was the last person to be in touch with Pant. Axar then rang up the keeper-batter’s manager for an update.
He added that once he came to know from the cricketer’s manager that Pant was safe, he breathed a sigh of relief.
“BCCI, Shardul everyone started calling me. Everyone felt that I was the last one to speak to him. I called him (Pant’s manager) and he said that everything is fine. 'How much damage his body has suffered due to injuries, we don’t know, but he’s safe'. After that, I ended the call and took a deep breath. Now, I was assured that he would fight. I know he is a fighter,” the 29-year-old asserted.
Pant has been constantly sharing updates from his rehab at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) on his social media handles. According to reports, he is likely to make a comeback before the T20 World Cup in the US and the West Indies next year.