After India’s defeat in the first Test at Headingley, Ravichandran Ashwin offered a mix of admiration and advice for Rishabh Pant, whose twin centuries came in a losing cause. Speaking on his YouTube channel, Ashwin reflected on Pant’s standout performance and said if he were head coach Gautam Gambhir, he would have one simple request for the wicket-keeper and that would be to score a double hundred.
Pant made a strong statement with the bat in both innings, scoring 134 and 118. He became only the second wicket-keeper in Test history to score centuries in both innings of the match. He also became the first Indian to notch up twin centuries in England.
Despite Rishabh Pant’s heroics, India lost the match by five wickets as England chased down 371 runs successfully at Headingley. The target would have been much more had India not collapsed in both innings. They went down from 430/3 to 471/10 in the first innings and lost their last six wickets for just 31 runs in the second.
Ravichandran Ashwin Wants Rishabh Pant to Push for a Double Century
Ravichandran Ashwin complimented Pant’s range and maturity but also pointed to the missed opportunity. With the lower-order not offering much support, Ashwin said that Gambhir should have a word with Pant and tell him to convert a century into a double next time.
"Rishabh had a fantastic game, but I would like to repeat that he has a great defence. There is not even one shot in the book that he cannot play," Ashwin said as quoted on his YouTube channel.
"I sometimes feel if I was Gautam Gambhir, I would take him aside and tell him, 'you played exceptionally well and I would have loved to be the batter with the ability that you have' but can I request you to make a double hundred next time when you are batting at 130 because you know the lower-order cannot contribute much. That would be the only request I would make of Rishabh. What a talented player," he added.
Gautam Gambhir’s Shocking Response to Question on Rishabh Pant’s Centuries
Rishabh Pant’s twin centuries were naturally a hot topic at the post-match press conference. Head coach Gautam Gambhir, though, chose to frame the conversation differently. When asked directly about Pant’s performance, Gambhir replied:
"There are three more centuries as well. Those are big positives as well. Thank you."
"I would have liked if you said there was a hundred from Yashasvi (Jaiswal), hundred from Shubman (Gill) on debut as captain, hundred from KL (Rahul), and two centuries from Rishabh. So five centuries in a Test match is a great start, to be honest. And hopefully the question could have been better," he added.
Gambhir's comments left fans surprised as they saw it as a disrespect to Pant. Gambhir got bashed on social media by netizens as they believed he downplayed Pant’s twin tons.
Also read: "Rishabh Pant Keeps on Contacting Me" - Prithvi Shaw Opens Up on Support System Amid Career Downfall
