The Indian wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant missed cricketing action for the whole last year in 2023, after he met a fatal car accident, that ruled him out of action for many vital events like the home Test series against Australia, and especially the ICC Men’s ODI World Cup 2023 in India.
Rishabh Pant, however, made a fantastic comeback in the game during the recently concluded Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, as he led the Delhi Capitals (DC) franchise too. The swashbuckling left-handed batter smashed 446 runs in the tournament at an average of 40.15 and a strike rate of 155.40.
Even with the gloves in hand, Pant helped in making 16 dismissals throughout the competition, as fans around the globe found the old flavour of his superb shots around the field.
‘Don’t worry, I will be right’ – Ricky Ponting shares Rishabh Pant’s message
There were scares on whether Rishabh Pant could survive the whole tournament, especially with the games coming very thick and fast, and how it will affect his fitness. Given he is the wicket-keeper of the team, he would also need to field for the 20 overs, and what if he feels something uncomfortable in his body.
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But Pant passed all these exams with flying colours. The Delhi Capitals coach Ricky Ponting has lauded the way Pant made his return in the game, and called it as ‘nothing but spectacular’.
“It’s been nothing short of spectacular, to be honest. I spent a few months with him (Rishabh Pant) in the middle of the IPL last year, which was only sort of three or four months after his accident,” the former Australia captain Ricky Ponting expressed on the ‘ICC Review’. “And I had grave fears then that he would never play the game again. What he’d been through psychologically, but what he’d been through physically. At that stage, he still couldn’t walk.”
The veteran also spoke about how the physio Patrick Farhart has stayed with him during this time and helped him in recovering quickly. Ponting also shared the message that he got from Rishabh Pant, just after the incident.
‘He (Rishabh Pant) was on crutches. And I remember saying to him, what do you think about next season? He just looked at me and said, don’t worry, I’ll be right. And he’s looked after himself incredibly well,” one of the successful captains of the game, Ricky Ponting added. “The Delhi Capitals franchise has done a great job looking after him. Patrick Farhart has been his physio. He’s done a great job with him as well.”
The Delhi Capitals coach also feels that besides his magnificent batting in the middle order, India will also be blessed with the wicket-keeper skills of Rishabh Pant during the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup 2024.
“No one had real concerns about his batting, because of how good he is and how dynamic he is with the bat,” Ponting remarked during the discussion. “But with his wicket-keeping, and having to squat every ball for 14 games in a row, there were certainly some concerns there.”
The former India player also believes that Rishabh Pant would be the first player he would pick for the India squad, and he hopes the left-hand batter makes a huge impact in the tournament.
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“I was asked when I was over there what I thought about him. He’d been picked in the Indian squad, and I basically said he’d be one of the first players picked, and sure enough he was,” Ponting stated.
“So, great to see him back out there playing again. I’ve enjoyed every moment of working with him. Obviously, he’s been the captain of the Delhi Capitals, and I’ve been the coach there,” the veteran concluded. “But it’s been a remarkable comeback, and hopefully he has a huge impact on this World Cup.”
Rishabh Pant is expected to be in action next when India play their only warm-up fixture against Bangladesh for the T20 World Cup 2024, on June 01, at the Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York.