NEW DELHI : Cricket fans are highly anticipating a fine comeback of star wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant to the Indian team and the Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI) on Tuesday treated supporters of the 26-year-old T20 World Cup-bound player with a video of star batter donning the blue jersey again.
The BCCI on Tuesday took to X (Twitter) to post a video of wicketkeeper-batter giving his fans a glimpse of his new look in the blue jersey with an expressive message. Pant made a roaring comeback to professional cricket after a major car accident and the swashbuckling left-hander made 446 runs at an average of 40.54 and a strike-rate of 155.40.
Pant also claimed a joint-high 16 dismissals with the gloves during the most recent India Premier League (IPL) season.
Ready. Able. Determined! 💪🏻
From adversity to triumph, #RishabhPant‘s journey to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is a testament of resilience and determination. Join him as he ignites the spirit of a nation at 7.52 PM during Matchdays! 🇮🇳
Stand Up for #TeamIndia with the… pic.twitter.com/ZnBTnLRju2
— BCCI (@BCCI) May 28, 2024
“Ready. Able. Determined! From adversity to triumph, #RishabhPant’s journey to the ICC Men’s T20 World Cup is a testament of resilience and determination. Join him as he ignites the spirit of a nation at 7.52 PM during Matchdays! Stand Up for #TeamIndia with the swashbuckling wicket-keeper 5th June onwards, in #T20WorldCup” BCCI posted.
The wicketkeeper-batter in December 2022 suffered life-threatening injuries from a horrific accident that left him with multiple fractures and required ligament reconstruction and treatment for a knee injury. These injuries were critical to his career, but he recently made his comeback in IPL 2024 after a 15-month rehabilitation.
India will start their T20 World Cup campaign on June 5 against Ireland at the newly constructed Nassau County International Cricket Stadium in New York.
Meanwhile, the most-awaited blockbuster clash between India and Pakistan will take place on June 9. They will later play tournament co-hosts USA (June 12) and Canada (June 15) to wrap up their Group A matches.
India squad: Rohit Sharma (c), Hardik Pandya (vc), Yashasvi Jaiswal, Virat Kohli, Suryakumar Yadav, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sanju Samson (wk), Shivam Dube, Ravindra Jadeja, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Arshdeep Singh, Jasprit Bumrah and Mohammed Siraj.
Reserves: Shubman Gill, Rinku Singh, Khaleel Ahmed and Avesh Khan. (ANI)