Rishabh Pant: India's Batting Star a Man of Few Words On-Field, But an Analyst Off It

Rishabh Pant, the dynamic Indian cricketer, is known for his aggressive batting style and his penchant for engaging in discussions about the game. However, there's a notable contrast between his talkative nature off the field and his focused silence while batting.

During the Headingley Test, an incident occurred just before the lunch break. Pant, who had reached his century, lost his shoe while running. As he paused to put it back on, Washington Sundar approached him with water and possibly a message. Shortly after, Pant was dismissed LBW, which led to a batting collapse.

Rishabh Pant celebrates his 50 in the second innings at Edgbaston © Getty

This isn't an isolated event. In the 2021 Sydney Test, Cheteshwar Pujara advised Pant to be more cautious, but Pant was soon dismissed for 97. According to India's batting coach Sitanshu Kotak, Pant prefers not to be spoken to during his innings, believing it disrupts his concentration. However, he enjoys discussing batting strategies extensively at other times.

Kotak elaborated, "Rishabh talks a lot about what he does, when he does it, and why he does it. He's someone who doesn't like talking too much during his innings because he feels that changes his mindset, and he takes the wrong decision. That's only when he's batting."

He added, "Apart from that, he talks about other batters also, about himself also, and he does plan what he wants to do because it's not so easy to score Test hundreds or not so easy to be successful at this level without having any planning."

Kotak emphasized that players like Pant and Yashasvi Jaiswal, who possess an aggressive mindset, add a valuable dimension to India's batting lineup. Their attacking approach complements the team's more conservative players, providing a dynamic edge. This was evident at Edgbaston, where the team collectively scored over 1000 runs across two innings.

"If a batter thinks there is a lot of movement in the pitch, and if there is an opportunity I have to score boundaries because there is a good ball coming [with my name on it], that is a bad mindset for red-ball cricket," Kotak said.

He further explained, "Anyway, they possess so much skill because of white-ball cricket that they can convert anything in the slot into fours and sixes. They don't have to really think that I want to hit a boundary."

Kotak also highlighted the team's overall batting performance, stating, "We have batted well in both the matches. I feel we have such skillful batters [who] can score at four an over without going searching for runs. What else is aggressive batting? We are scoring 360 in 90 overs. But our mindset now is to not go looking for boundaries. [And] when you don't play undue shots, then you are going to stay on the wicket for a long time."

Lord's Test: Anticipating Seam Assistance

Following the Edgbaston Test, where the pitch conditions resembled those of the Subcontinent, there's an expectation that the Lord's pitch will offer more assistance to the seamers. Kotak acknowledged the greenish tinge on the pitch two days before the Test, but noted that it could change.

"It seems a little bit in the wicket... that there is a lot of green. But tomorrow when these people will do the final cut, after that you can speak," Kotak said.

He further added, "Generally, the normal Lord's Test, the scores of the first and second innings, are comparatively low. So you can expect that there can be more help for the bowlers. For the batsmen, the same thing, I believe that it is a mindset. Spending time on the wicket is the best friend you can have. The more time you spend on the wicket, the more you will adjust to the wicket."

Regarding the potential challenges posed by the England team, Kotak said, "It will be a challenge, Jofra coming in. There might be a couple of bowling changes in the England team, but that we don't know. And after the last two games, if as a whole, England want to give a little bit more challenging wicket, it is fair enough. And it will be a challenge for anyone on any wicket. So I am not really thinking that, oh, it will be very challenging. You bat well, it is fine. If you don't bat well, any wicket can be challenging."