Indian wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant charged down the track and smashed England captain Ben Stokes over his head for four. It happened on Day 1 of the first England versus India Test at Leeds on Friday, June 20. The southpaw showed the moment of audacity off the second ball that he faced, and Stokes burst out laughing after the ball raced to the fence.
Rishabh Pant walked out to bat number five on Friday, following the dismissal of Yashasvi Jaiswal for 101. Watch the video of the moment here:
Pant had made headlines on his debut tour of England in 2018. Off the first ball that he faced in Test cricket at Trent Bridge, he lofted Adil Rashid for a six straight over his head. He certainly began his journey in the longest format in the most sensational fashion.
Shubman Gill, Rishabh Pant keep India on top after Yashasvi Jaiswal’s heroics on Day One
Put into bat by home team captain Ben Stokes, the Indian opening pair of Yashasvi Jaiswal and KL Rahul put on 91 runs for the first wicket. However, England struck twice in quick succession before lunch, removing Rahul for 42 and debutant Sai Sudharsan for nought.
Jaiswal and Shubman Gill restored momentum for India in the post-lunch session. The duo made the most of a combination of ordinary bowling and a placid surface to make Stokes seriously question his decision at the toss.
The duo put on 129 runs for the third wicket to put India in the driver’s seat in the early stages of the match. The stand was broken by Stokes, who got a delivery to breach Jaiswal’s defence on 101 and had the furniture disturbed.
At the time of writing, India were 306/3 in 75 overs, with Shubman Gill and Rishabh Pant on the crease. Gill became the fourth Indian batter to score a Test hundred on his captaincy debut. He joins Vijay Hazare, Sunil Gavaskar, and Virat Kohli on the list.
Edited by Aditya Singh