New Delhi:
Rishabh Pant shattered plenty of records on day 2 of the Sydney Test against Australia. His 159* made him the first Indian keeper to hit a 150+ score in an overseas Test while he became the first keeper from India to hit a Test century in Australia. Pant’s aggressive batting has already enhanced his reputation on the tour where he has been solid behind the wickets. He picked up 11 catches in Adelaide which is the joint-most for most catches in a Test match while he has shattered the record for most catches by an Indian keeper in a bilateral overseas Test series. Add to that, his chatter behind the wickets has taken the internet by storm. His performances have gotten so much attention that he was made part of a new anthem which made the rounds at the Sydney Cricket Ground on day 2.
The Bharat Army, the unofficial fan group of the Indian cricket team, belted out a fan song which went viral on social media. It was dedicated to Pant and his art of baby-sitting. These were the lyrics with the video below
We’ve got Pant
Rishab Pant
I just don’t think you’ll understand
He’ll hit you for a six
He’ll babysit your kids
We’ve got Rishab Pant
The baby-sitting reference is a hilarious dig on Tim Paine, the Australian cricket team skipper, who sledged Pant during the Melbourne Test. Paine offered his opinion about the selection of India’s ODI team which included MS Dhoni and the skipper said, “Now that Big MS back in the ODI squad, maybe he could play for the Hobart Hurricanes. Beautiful city rent a nice waterfront place. Do you babysit? I’ll take my wife to the movies one night and you can babysit,” Paine said in an epic way.
Read More | Pant shatters a record, adds to his legendary status as ace sledger
In response, Paine’s wife Bonnie put up a picture on her Instagram account which had Pant 'babysitting' the captain’s son during an event at Australian Prime Minister Scott Morrison’s residence. The Indian wicketkeeper showed that he is good with babies, something that got the appreciation from none other than Paine’s wife.
Read More | When Rishabh Pant turned 'baby sitter' for Tim Paine's kids
Pant has been fabulous with his sledges behind the wicket. In Adelaide, Pant sledged Usman Khawaja when he said, “Not everyone is like Pujara here”. On the final day, Pat Cummins was on the receiving end when Pant said, “Come on Patty, we need some sixes now”. His stump mic compilation took Twitter by storm and it has only increased since. In Melbourne, Pant tore into Paine in an epic way, “We got a special guest today. Have you ever heard of a temporary captain, ever, Mayank? You don’t need anything to get him out, boy. He loves to talk, that’s the only thing he can do, boy! Only, talking, talking!”
The Delhi keeper’s sledge behind the wickets has given India the ultimate boost in their mind games against the Australian side who are low on confidence and are hurtling towards their first-ever series loss at home against India.
