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NEW DELHI: Rishabh Pant’s twin centuries at Headingley may not have been enough to save India from a five-wicket defeat in the first Test, but his sensational batting has won hearts and headlines across the cricketing world. Former England captain Michael Vaughan led the chorus of praise, calling Pant “a game-changer” whose methods might seem mad but are built on deep cricketing intelligence.
Go Beyond The Boundary with our YouTube channel. SUBSCRIBE NOW!“There’s a lot of science in that madness, the way that he plays,” Vaughan said on the Stick to Cricket show. “You can see even Ben Stokes is admiring when he’s batting.”
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Pant’s unorthodox and fearless strokeplay, including his trademark ramp shots and reverse scoops, evoked comparisons to the greatest wicketkeeper-batters in history. “Adam Gilchrist is the best wicketkeeper-batter for me,” Vaughan added. “But Pant just set a new trend. MS Dhoni was brilliant in white-ball cricket, but Pant’s Test record is far superior to his white-ball numbers.”Alastair Cook and David Lloyd also lauded Pant, with Cook pointing out the grit behind the glamour. “That smile doesn’t mean he doesn’t like to win,” he said. “You don’t score two centuries and not really want to. He could’ve relaxed after the first, but didn’t.”Despite Pant’s heroics — 134 and 118 in the match — India were let down by a fragile lower order and a bowling unit that failed to strike consistently beyond Jasprit Bumrah. England chased down 371 with five wickets to spare.The second Test of the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy starts on July 2 at Edgbaston.
