Dinesh Karthik said that the hard work Rishabh Pant has put off the field is now starting to reflect on his performances at home and overseas.
While he may have scored a whirlwind 96 off 97 balls during India’s first Test against Sri Lanka in Mohali, Rishabh Pant’s wicketkeeping should be the “hallmark” of the match for him personally, veteran wicketkeeper-batter Dinesh Karthik has said.
Dinesh Karthik: Hallmark Of 1st Test Would Be How Well Rishabh Pant Kept Wickets
Dinesh Karthik said that the amount of hard work that Rishabh Pant has put in on his wicketkeeping is now reflected in his performances behind the stumps. Dinesh Karthik highlighted the dismissal of Pathum Nissanka, in which the Sri Lanka batter got an outside edge that went to Rishabh Pant off the bowling of Ravichandran Ashwin.
“His batting is phenomenal and we can speak a lot about that. But I think the hallmark of this Test personally for him would be how well he kept,” said Karthik.
“Pathum Nissanka’s catch was brilliant. Whenever an offspinner bowls into the rough a little bit and the ball is turning in, it is a hard one to take because you never know which one is going to straighten and which one will turn. On top of that if it deviates off the bat it becomes that much harder and that is where I like Pant. His hands were at the right place,” he said.
Dinesh Karthik further added that Rishabh Pant was earlier not very good behind the stumps and he had some technical flaws but he has worked hard and made massive improvements.
Dinesh Karthik: Amount Of Work He Has Put In Off The Field Is Reflecting On Rishabh Pant’s Keeping
Dinesh Karthik said that the fact that Rishabh Pant’s hands were in the right position shows that he has now sharpened his instincts.
“When you stand close in you need to practice so much for getting your hands in the right place. It needs to be second nature to you because you don’t have time. You need to have your instincts working better than people who do it in the outfield and for that you have to put in some hard work. Repetition is very important and the amount of work he has put in off the field is reflecting on his keeping. “
“Why he couldn’t do it before is obviously a technical flaw and he has worked on that over time. It takes a little bit of time to settle in and he looked solid in this game. I liked both the catches he took. He was low and making sure the hands were soft. There are just milliseconds between the ball coming off the bat and for it to go (into the gloves),” said Karthik.
Rishabh Pant was dismissed on 96 off 97 balls on Day 1 of the first Test against Sri Lanka in Mohali. He had played a blinder of an innings, smashing nine fours and four sixes as he switched gears after scoring his half-century. In fact, the 24-year-old wicketkeeper-batsman, who has scored four centuries in 29 Tests, has been dismissed as many as five times in the 90s.
In his first series at home, he scored back-to-back scores of the 90s against West Indies in 2018. Then again last year in Australia, he fell short by 3 runs to the three-figure mark at Sydney. Later in the home series against England, he scored 91 at Chennai.
Rishabh Pant will like to make the most of his form in the series decider, which will be a pink-ball contest. With Indian players set to shift their focus on the forthcoming IPL 2022 edition and then on the 2022 T20I World Cup, the 23-year-old will be desperate for another rollicking performance in the red-ball format.