Sunil Gavaskar praised Rishabh Pant for his masterful strike against England in the final ODI match of the recently concluded series.
Pant played a winning half against England in the ODI final (Courtesy: Reuters)
HIGHLIGHTS
- Pant played a great match 125 to lead India to victory
- Gavaskar says the 24-year-old has learned from his previous mistakes
- India’s ticketing legend also urges patience with Pant
Sunil Gavaskar has heaped praise on India’s runner Rishabh Pant for his incredible knockdown against England in Sunday’s ODI final.
Pant scored 125 crunchy goals to lead the home team and scored 2-1. He also shared a key 133-run partnership with Hardik Pandya as the duo guided India through a difficult period when England were firmly in the steering chair.
During a recent exchange with Sports Tak, Gavaskar praised the 24-year-old’s batting and said he had learned from his mistakes during the T20I series against South Africa in June. The India legend also said that the way he finished the chase against England on Sunday showed he is a player who can absorb pressure and then attack.
“Rishabh Pant seems to have learned from his mistakes against South Africa. He chased the balls out of the tree to get them past his footing later, but the way he hit the ball responsibly yesterday showed how well he was on pace in his innings. “
“The way he broke a series of boundaries late in the game shows that he is someone who can absorb pressure and then attack,” said Gavaskar.
Gavaskar further commented by saying that it will be interesting to see if Pant can convert his shape to the T20I format. However, the Indian cricket legend says that it looks like the 24-year-old has found the mold for success in white-ball cricket.
“We will need to wait and see (if Pant can reproduce this form in the T20Is). He may have found the right mold to play whiteball cricket,” said Gavaskar.
The former India captain also talked about the difference between ODIs and T20Is, and said that everyone needs to show patience with Pant.
“In T20, you have to start playing from the third device and move on to the fifth, so it’s very different from ODIs. We need to be patient with Pant and realize that he will win us games when he is ready, while sometimes there will be setbacks. “
“We should not forget that he launched Test only 4 years ago. He is only 23 years old [24] and in that era, there was a bit of adrenaline that made smashers more inclined to play hasty shots,” said Gavaskar.
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