Former New Zealand cricketer Ian Smith noted that Rishabh Pant has been in tremendous form since his return to competitive cricket following a near-fatal car accident in December 2022.
The southpaw finished as the leading run-getter for Delhi Capitals in the 2024 edition of the Indian Premier League and was picked in India’s side for the ongoing Men’s T20 World Cup. During the marquee ICC event, Pant has shown glimpses of his talent, playing some small but crucial knocks against Ireland, Pakistan, and Afghanistan.
“Rishabh Pant since his accident has come back very strong, and he looks in terrific form. He is dynamic. He’s aggressive, he’s dangerous,” Smith was quoted as saying by The Times of India.
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Smith went on to praise Pant’s ability to bat at different positions across the three different formats of the game and support the batters around him.
“He can compliment who’s with him, whether he comes in to support Kohli or whether he comes in to support Rohit Sharma, so three is a good spot for him because I firmly believe that in white-ball cricket your best players should have the opportunity to face the most deliveries. And so that’s what makes him valuable,” Smith asserted.
“He can hit the first ball he faces out of the ground, and he’s got other bailout options as well if it doesn’t work out that way. I mean, you know, he’s replaced a very good player in KL Rahul. KL Rahul is a world-class cricketer. That says it all for me,” he added.
Few more years before people call him similar to Gilchrist: Smith
Smith acknowledged that there are a few similarities between Pant and legendary Australian wicketkeeper-batter Adam Gilchrist. However, the cricketer-turned-commentator believes that the Indian glovesman still has some ground to cover to match up to the Aussie icon, who has over 15,000 international runs and more than 800 catches behind the wickets.
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“Ah year, well, he’s got a bit to go. But yes, a similar type of cricketer who can, in Test cricket, bat down the order. And in white-ball cricket, can be back at the top of the order. So, there’s that similarity with Gilchrist there. But if he continues in the same vein for a few more years, then people will say Gilchrist and Pant, yeah, very close,” the cricketer-turned commentator elaborated.
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