Rishabh Pant (Source – BCCI)
The legendary Wasim Akram was effusive in his praise for Rishabh Pant for his heroic comeback to international cricket after encountering a horrific car accident in December 2022. The Indian wicketkeeper-batter suffered multiple injuries which kept him out of competitive cricket for 14 months. However, since his comeback, the 26-year-old has shown why he is regarded as one of the finest wicketkeeper-batters in modern-day cricket.
Akram said that he was worried upon hearing about Pant’s near-fatal accident. The former Pakistan pacer called Pant a ‘miracle kid’ for his sensational comeback to cricket. After scoring 446 runs in the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024, his comeback to competitive cricket, Pant was picked in India’s 15-man squad for the T20 World Cup. He played a key role in helping the Men in Blue to go the distance. Recently, he slammed his sixth century in Test cricket during the first Test against Bangladesh at the MA Chidambaram Stadium in Chennai.
Also Read: Rishabh Pant has been the biggest match-winner for India, his best is yet to come: Mohammad Kaif
“Look at Pant’s performance, the miracle that he has performed by showing he is superhuman by returning from his tragedy. The way his accident happened, we were all worried in Pakistan, I was worried and tweeted about him. He came back and averaged 40 in the IPL, 446 runs at a strike rate of 155, he’s a miracle kid,” Akram was quoted as saying by Hindustan Times.
“Especially what he has been through in that horrific accident, coming back from that, how mentally strong must that boy be. The way he used to play in Test cricket, the way he performed in Australia with the century then. The way he batted against England, playing a reverse-sweep against Anderson in Test cricket, even Cummins. He’s special,” the 58-year-old added.
Rishabh Pant’s Test career numbers
Pant has played 34 Tests so far for India since making his debut in August 2018. He has amassed 2,419 runs at an average of 44.80 and a strike rate of 74.09. He has bailed India out of precarious positions and unsettled some of the best bowling line-ups with his proactive batting.
After scoring a phenomenal 109 off 128 balls in the second innings of the first Test against Bangladesh, the Haridwar-born will be hoping to go from strength to strength as India have nine more Tests to play in the next few months.