Rishabh Pant's Fatal Accident To Become A hindrance For His Test Return?

Rishabh Pant- (X.com)Rishabh Pant- (X.com)

India will host Bangladesh for a two-match Test series starting on September 19. Star keeper-batter Rishabh Pant is back in the Test side after a gap of two years. Pant last played a red-ball game for India in December 2022 against Bangladesh. 

Pant suffered a fatal car crash on December 30, 2022, following which he underwent multiple surgeries for a ligament tear in his knee that ruled him out of cricket action for nearly one and a half years. 

Before Test cricket, Pant played in the IPL 2024 and T20 World Cup 2024, where he did well and looked unfazed by the injury. However, it is still to be seen whether his injury would become a hindrance in Test cricket or not. 

Pant's Preparations for Red-Ball Cricket

Playing the longest format of the match is physically toiling, and in particular for a keeper, who has to be on his knees for the entire day. It is worth noting that before Pant's injury, he was India's best-ranked batter. He had cemented his place as India's first-choice keeper. However, things are different now as he faces comptetition from Dhruv Jurel. 

Before returning to the Indian set-up, Pant kept wickets and batted for long hours at the NCA. The doctors were impressed by his recovery as Pant showed no signs of a relapse. The southpaw also featured in the first-round of Duleep Trophy 2024, where he stitched a fifty and looked in great touch. 

Pant's Magic With The Gloves In Duleep Trophy

Talking about his keeping, one area where the Indian management would be sweating hard over a potential injury, then Rishabh shone with the gloves in Duleep Trophy as he took some great catches, which included five catches in the second innings. Thus, it is fair to conclude that the car crash would not turn out to be a hindrance as Rishabh has not rushed his return to the Indian team and let his injury recover avoiding any relapse.