Rishabh Pant against England (Source: AP Photos)
Rishabh Pant made his Test cricket debut in 2018 and since then has grown into one of the finest Indian wicketkeepers to play the longest format. He has already broken plenty of records held by MS Dhoni, and now with a fifty at Lord's, he has equalled another unique record of India's former captain.
The left-handed wicketkeeper batter now has 13 fifty-plus scores in SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia) countries. It is the joint-most for a designated Indian wicketkeeper batter in SENA countries. MS Dhoni achieved that feat in 60 innings. Pant, on the other hand, has done it in 53 innings, and in those 13 50-plus scores, he has six centuries as well.
List Of Most 50+ Scores In Tests By Indian Wicket-Keepers (SENA)
- 13 - MS Dhoni
- 13* - Rishabh Pant
- 7 - Farokh Engineer
- 5 - Kiran More
- 5 - Syed Kirmani
Dhoni, on the other hand, could not get a century in SENA countries but came close to it multiple times. Farokh Engineer is third on the list with seven fifty-plus scores in 33 innings, while Kiran More is fourth with five scores in excess of 50. Syed Kirmani is below Kiran More in that list with 4 50-plus scores.
Rishabh Pant Continues His Great Form Despite Injury
Thus, Rishabh Pant has once again proved that he is indeed one of India's finest wicketkeeper-batters in Test cricket. This fifty at Lord's is even more special as he scored it through a lot of pain after injuring his finger on the opening day of the Test.
The southpaw has been in great form in this series. He scored centuries in both innings of the Headingley Test and then smashed a crucial fifty in the second innings at Edgbaston. He has now hit another half-century and as he was looking set for another big hundred, a run-out at a stroke of Lunch ended his innings at a score of 74.
