'He came to England and hit a six on first or second ball' - Graeme Swann says he adores the way Rishabh Pant plays cricket

Rishabh Pant has lately been scrutinized for his rash and inconsistent shots as well as poor glovework. The emergence of KL Rahul in the limited-overs side also cost Pant his place in the national side. Pant, after breaking into the national side, had an arduous task to step in MS Dhoni’s shoes. People comparing the young lad with the veteran skipper mounted the unwanted pressure on Pant’s shoulders.

22-year-old Pant has failed to cement his spot in the Indian team but there’s no doubt over the talent and skill which he possesses. The left-hander has so far donned the India jersey in 13 Tests, 16 ODIs and 28 T20Is, gathering over 1500 runs across the three formats.

With age on his side, Pant still has ample time to prove his worth at the biggest level. Former England international Graeme Swann also heaped praise on the Delhi lad and said that he adores the way Pant plays his cricket. “The name came up there, Rishabh Pant. I absolutely adore the way he plays his cricket. Because he has someone backing him,” Swann said during the Cricket Connected Show on Star Sports.

Pant is a youngster and yet he backs his game: Graeme Swann

Swann’s comment came in reply to a statement made by Irfan Pathan, who highlighted Kohli’s feature of backing a promising youngster such as Pant. Irfan drew out similarities in leadership skills of Kohli and Ganguly and said that the current India skipper supports Pant’s talent.

Pant had hogged the headlines in 2018 with his overseas red ball expeditions. The southpaw had slammed a Test ton in English conditions, following it with another hundred in Australia. Swann recalled Pant’s debut during the third Test between India and England in 2018 where the wicketkeeper-batsman walked out at No. 7 and hammered a six off leg-spinner Adil Rashid.

“You remember in the Test series when he came to England and first ball or second ball at Trent Bridge, he hit the spin bowler back over his head for six. I thought at that moment that this guy would be something special in Test cricket because he is a youngster and yet he backs his game. He’s got the team around him who backs up,” Swann said.