Rishabh Pant continued to cement his reputation as India’s most fearless wicketkeeper-batter, notching up twin centuries in the Headingley Test and matching multiple records along the way. After scoring a fluent 134 in the first innings, Pant added another 118 in the second, becoming the first Indian to score centuries in both innings of a Test in England. He now joins India’s twin centuries club which includes Vijay Hazare, Sunil Gavaskar (three times), Rahul Dravid (twice), Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane and Rohit Sharma. Pant’s consistency in England is fast earning him a special place among India’s batting greats. His four Test hundreds in England put him alongside Sachin Tendulkar and Dilip Vengsarkar, both of whom have four Test centuries in the country. Only Rahul Dravid has more for India, with six Test tons in England. Pant’s twin hundreds also made him only the second designated wicketkeeper to achieve this feat in Test history after Zimbabwe’s Andy Flower. His match aggregate of 252 runs is the highest by an Indian wicketkeeper in a Test, breaking Budhi Kunderan’s record of 230 against England in Chennai in 1964. It is also the fourth-highest match aggregate by any wicketkeeper in Test cricket, with only Flower ahead of him.
Pant’s power-hitting was on full display at Headingley as he struck nine sixes in the second innings, equalling the record for the most sixes in a Test in England alongside Andrew Flintoff and Ben Stokes.Quiz: Who’s that IPL player? Pant has also joined an elite list of visiting batters with five consecutive fifty-plus scores in England, putting him in the same bracket as Don Bradman, Hansie Cronje, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Kumar Sangakkara and Daryl Mitchell. Only Steven Smith has more, with seven. The Headingley Test was historic for India too, as the team produced five centuries in the same match for the first time. Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill and Pant scored centuries in the first innings while KL Rahul and Pant added two more in the second. After bringing up his second century, Pant brushed off Sunil Gavaskar’s playful suggestion to celebrate with a somersault, saving it for another day and instead launching a quick counterattack on Joe Root before falling for 118. Pant’s record-breaking spree in England underlines his growing stature as one of India’s most impactful batters in overseas Tests.
