"He reminded me of Adam Gilchrist.." Greg Chappel lauds 'exciting' Rishabh Pant after his twin tons in Headingley test

Rishabh Pant made 134 and 118 for India in first test against England in Leeds.

Former India coach Greg Chappell thinks Rishabh Pant’s unconventional batting style is revolutionizing cricket and changing the game. The former India coach exclaimed, “…and he’s a match-winner,” adding that he “very nearly made the difference in that game (at Headingley).”

Despite India’s defeat in the Headingley test, Pant’s genius was evident as he struck hundreds in both innings, a unique accomplishment that demonstrated his capacity to alter the course of games.

Rishabh Pant became the first Indian wicket-keeper batter and second overall to score twin centuries in the same test. Pant hammered 134 and 118 in the two innings but couldn’t win the match for India, as England successfully chased down 371 runs with five wickets in hand.

Rishabh Pant now has 3200 runs in 44 tests with eight centuries and 15 fifties at an average of 44.44 and a strike rate of 74.03.

“The beauty of Rishabh Pant’s batting is” – Greg Chappell’s analysis

The India test vice-captain made his mark at Headingley with twin hundreds, a record for an Indian hitter, and former India head coach Greg Chappell has stated that the beauty of Rishabh Pant’s batting is that he earns his runs quickly, giving his team the time to win games.

Pant is changing the way the game is played, according to Chappell, with a batting strategy that deviates from accepted conventions.

“The beauty of it (Pant’s batting) is that he gets his runs at a very fast rate, which gives you time to win cricket matches. It was a phenomenal performance—some of the shots that he played probably weren’t in the MCC coaching manual when I last looked at it. He is reinventing the game as a batsman,” Chappell was quoted by Cricbuzz.

“You know, modern technology—the bats are very different. Obviously, you can play shots that weren’t possible with the old bats. But man, he’s exciting to watch. You never quite know what to expect from the first ball at any stage. He’s likely to jump down the wicket to the fast bowlers, or he’ll play the falling ramp shot. You never quite know what to expect, so it keeps the opposition on their toes,” Chappell said at a promotional event in Mumbai on Wednesday (June 25).

“What an exciting cricketer!” Greg Chappell praises Rishabh Pant

Chappell, who is widely considered to be among the best Australian batters after Don Bradman, compared Pant to another legendary wicket-keeper, Adam Gilchrist.

“What an exciting cricketer, what a player to have on your team. When I first saw him, he was a different sort of player, of course, but he reminded me very much of Adam Gilchrist. You know the difference that it can make to a team to have a wicketkeeper who can bat at that level and score runs quickly,” Chappell signed off.

Rishabh Pant’s form will be crucial for India, who are 0-1 down in the five-match test series, as the second match will begin on July 2 in Birmingham.

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