Rishabh Pant was undoubtedly India's star performer in the first Test of the five-match series against England at Headingley. The 27-year-old scored hundreds in both of India's innings to help them set a fighting target of 371 for the hosts. With his knocks of 134 and 118 in the first and second innings respectively, Pant became the Indian wicketkeeper-batter to score the most centuries in red-ball cricket, surpassing MS Dhoni. He also became the first-ever wicketkeeper-batter from the country to score twin tons in a Test.
Though the Men in Blue ended up on the losing side as England triumphed by five wickets, former Australia cricketer and India head coach Greg Chappell was left thoroughly impressed by Pant and even remarked that the 27-year-old reminded him of Adam Gilchrist when he first saw him.
"When I first saw him, he reminded me of Adam Gilchrist...a different sort of player, of course, but...the difference it can make to a team when a wicketkeeper can bat at that level and to score runs quickly," Chappell said during a promotional event on Wednesday.
"The beauty is Rishabh gets runs at a very fast rate which gives you time to win cricket matches. His was a phenomenal performance. Some of the shots he played weren't in the MCC playing manual. He is really reinventing the game as a batsman. With modern technology, the bats are very different and you can play shots which weren't possible with the old bats. He's exciting to watch," he added.
Chappell also praised Pant's variety of shots
Chappell further stated that one cannot expect what kind of shots that Pant can come up with on the field.
"You never quite know what to expect from him from the first ball. At any stage he is likely to jump down the wicket to the fast bowlers or play the falling ramp shot," Chappell stated.
"You never quite know what to expect. It keeps the opposition on their toes. He is a match winner (and he) very nearly made the difference in that game," he added.
Notably, Pant achieved a career-high on the ICC Test batter Rankings following the conclusion of the Headingley Test, reaching the 7th position. The left-hand batter will be looking to continue his blistering form in the format in the second Test against England which will be played at Edgbaston from July 2.