Former Indian cricketer Ravi Shastri has named Rishabh Pant as the player who surprised him the most at the T20 World Cup 2024. Pant scored 171 runs in the competition and was a mastermind behind the stumps to contribute towards India’s coronation as two-time champions.
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Recognising Pant’s individual brilliance at the tournament, Shashtri commended the wicketkeeper on his phenomenal comeback. While talking about the most surprising player at the World Cup, Shastri told ICC, “For me Rishabh Pant. Because, let’s face it, we all know how talented he his, what he can do. But for him to come back after that injury, to really come back from nowhere, you know from the jaws of death to come out and then you know respond and play in the fashion he did.”
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Ravi Shastri also talked about how Rishabh Pant shared the team’s responsibilities, coming in at number three to deliver for India.
“He was sent at number 3, given that extra responsibility. He did his job with the bat. But it was his keeping that really surprised everyone.” The former India head coach was also astonished at the wicketkeeper’s rapid fast recovery followed by a series of crucial performances. “You know, for someone to recover that quickly and then move the way he did. He hardly missed anything, albeit he must have felt the pressure as the tournament got on, because it’s not easy to come back and do all the stuff he did and I thought it was the most refreshing thing and a surprise as well and a surprise as well, especially the keeping,” Shastri explained.
Rishabh Pant was rock solid at the T20 World Cup, producing crucial knocks against Bangladesh and Ireland. His best individual performance came against Pakistan where Pant was the highest scorer for the team with a 31-ball 42. He smashed six boundaries in that game.
Pant failed to show up with the willow in the final against South Africa, departing after scoring a duck. He made himself useful in the second half, completing two important catches behind the stumps. India had won that match by seven runs.
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Following his life-threatening road accident in December 2022, Rishabh Pant successfully returned to professional cricket in the 2024 Indian Premier League (IPL). While the wicketkeeper batter was unable to lead the Delhi Capitals side to the playoffs, Pant showed up with the bat on numerous occasions for the side. In the 13 matches he played, Pant scored 446 runs at an average of 40.55.
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