Pant's Fearless Batting Redefines Test Cricket, Echoes Gilchrist's Brilliance: Chappell

Greg Chappell Lauds Rishabh Pant's Game-Changing Innings, Compares Him to Adam Gilchrist

Former India coach Greg Chappell has showered praise on Rishabh Pant following the wicketkeeper-batter’s remarkable centuries at Headingley. Chappell hailed him as a game-changer, drawing comparisons to the legendary Australian cricketer Adam Gilchrist.

Rishabh Pant celebrates a century against England

Pant, who now serves as India’s Test vice-captain, etched his name in history by becoming only the second wicketkeeper-batter, after Zimbabwe's Andy Flower, to achieve the feat of scoring a century in both innings of a Test match. Despite India's five-wicket defeat on Day 5 of the series opener at Headingley, Pant's explosive batting performance stood out as a major highlight.

Chappell, speaking at an event in Mumbai, emphasized the significance of Pant's rapid scoring rate, saying, "The beauty of it (Pant’s batting) is that he gets his runs at a very fast rate, which gives you time to win cricket matches. It was a phenomenal performance; some of the shots that he played probably weren’t in the MCC coaching manual when I last looked at it."

Chappell believes that Pant is revolutionizing Test match batting with his fearless approach, effectively utilizing modern bats and his own natural talent. "He is reinventing the game as a batter. You know, modern technology, the bats are very different. You can play shots that weren’t possible with the old bats. But man, he’s exciting to watch,” he added.

Chappell was also impressed by Pant's ability to keep bowlers guessing. “You never quite know what to expect from the first ball at any stage. He’s likely to jump down the wicket to the pacers, or he’ll play the falling ramp shot. You never quite know what to expect, so it keeps the opposition on their toes,” he explained.

Recalling his initial assessment of the left-handed batter, Chappell noted, “When I first saw him, he was a different sort of player, of course, but he reminded me very much of Adam Gilchrist.”

Pant's twin centuries propelled him to a career-best seventh position in the ICC Test rankings for batters. India aims to leverage his explosive form in the second Test, scheduled to begin on July 2. A victory in the upcoming match would level the series for the visitors.