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India's star wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant has fond memories at The Gabba, Brisbane. Pant led India to a famous win at the venue when the cricket pundits had ruled out an Indian comeback in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy 2020-21. Pant is not a usual batter who plays shots according to match situations. He is often seen playing outrageous shots to stun the opponent. Some of his shots have been high risk but highly rewarding as well. Ahead of the third Test in Brisbane, former head coach Ravi Shastri asked the southpaw whether he practices those shots.
"Generally I don't practice such (unorthodox sweep and scoop) shots, it's a game-plan according to the bowlers because it's not always easy to just defend the ball. My mindset tells me it's safer, I always play percentage cricket," the 27-year-old said before the coin toss.
He was also asked about his mindset in crunch situations and how he feels coming back at the venue which made him immortal in Test cricket.
"It's amazing, when I entered (The Gabba) I got a positive feeling. It gives a positive attitude and confidence in a series where things are level, it makes you want to do well. Playing the situation has been a learning for me, bailing out the team from a hard situation. Sometimes it's hard, most of the time I need to keep telling myself to think positive. There are easy ways to do it but that's where I put my foot down and keep doing the same thing that has given me a lot of success," he said.
Pant also opened about the challenges he faces while donning the gloves behind the wicket after his unfortunate accident that kept him out of action for more than a year.
"Definitely it was one of the most challenging parts but I made sure with all the doctors that I could be fully fit, I always wanted to keep. The ball travels much more (in Australia), that is something to look for. It does a bit off the wicket but that is part and parcel of the game," he said.
Pant's form and numbers in Australia
While The Gabba has been a happy hunting ground for Pant, he is yet to score big in the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024-25. So far, he has scored 87 runs from four innings.
However, he still averages over 50 in Australia. He has scored 711 runs from 16 innings including one century and two fifties. His strike rate of 70.18 is impressive as well.
