Former Indian national cricket team player Ajay Jadeja recently highlighted a great quality similar to that of Rohit Sharma that star wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant has.

Pant finally made his comeback in the first match of the two-match series against Bangladesh in Chennai. He put in an incredible performance and never looked like he was out of action in the longest format of the game for over 600 days.

In the first innings, Rishabh Pant scored 39 runs but his runs were extremely crucial as India had lost Rohit Sharma, Virat Kohli and Shubman Gill to low scores. Pant added 62 runs with Yashasvi Jaiswal and did not let India come under tremendous pressure.

However, he saved the best for the second innings as the wicketkeeper-batsman scored a stunning century on his Test comeback. Pant finished his innings with 109 runs off 128 balls, with 13 fours and 4 sixes, to equal MS Dhoni’s all-time record for most tons (6) by an Indian wicketkeeper-batsman in Tests.

Meanwhile, during a discussion on Colors Cineplex, Ajay Jadeja picked Rishabh Pant’s batting masterclass as the biggest positive for India from the first Test. He explained:

“If I had to pick just one thing, I would pick Rishabh Pant’s knock because it has more emotions associated with it. Not that it made a huge difference tactically. I think it was Sanjay’s (Manjrekar) line that Rishabh Pant is a rare gem. There are very few rare gems and it also depends on how you use them.

“There was no doubt in his mind, but we had doubts in our minds, or people on the outside. People who aren’t weird think average things. There was no doubt in his mind because you’ve seen it in his game. He hasn’t changed his approach. He played the same way he used to play before. However, you get a confidence when you score a hundred points.”

Numbers don’t matter to him – Ajay Jadeja on Rishabh Pant

Ajay Jadeja further said that Rishabh Pant is like Rohit Sharma as he does not play for achievements and concentrates solely on helping his team win. He said:

“Yesterday (Saturday) he also showed that numbers don’t matter to him. His approach remained the same after scoring a century. He could have gotten out earlier too, he missed a catch, he was a bit lucky, and only brave people are lucky.”

Ajay Jadeja also said that Rishabh Pant was always confident in himself and with his tone, he put an end to the doubts that were in the minds of his fans. He explained:

“I think the doubts were just in our minds or in the minds of the fans, because when you love someone, you think nothing bad should happen. He’s a positive guy. Now that he’s had a start like this, he’s only going to get better.”

“He has not yet been where we needed him the most and without him we would not have been able to save the match. His special feature is that he is always able to play when he is most needed. When needed, this rare gem will shine even more.”