Delhi Capitals (DC) skipper Rishabh Pant marked his comeback in the ongoing Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 with a 13-ball 18-run knock against Punjab Kings (PBKS) a few weeks ago. The batter, though, couldn’t make his mark in the first two outings, but he managed to turn up the heat with his blistering knocks in the last two matches.
Pant scored two consecutive half-centuries in his team’s last two matches against Chennai Super Kings and Kolkata Knight Riders (KKR) to announce his arrival in the IPL 2024. The glovesman took his side to the victory after playing a 23-ball 51-run knock, while his valiant 25-ball 55-run knock against KKR kept his side in the fray for a long time.
Notably, the last two performances from Rishabh Pant give some hope to the batter for his international comeback after suffering a near-fatal car accident on 31st December 2022. The wicketkeeper batter battled out all the injuries and paved the way to again play cricket in record time.
After his IPL comeback, Rishabh Pant is on track to make his Team India comeback as well, believes Michael Clarke, former Australian cricketer.
Pant, with his brilliant display of batting in the last two games, has certainly knocked on the selector’s doors for his selection in Team India’s squad for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024.
Clarke congratulated the cricketer for undergoing months of hard work off the field to make a comeback in record time.
“Yeah, look it’s great for Indian cricket, but it’s also great for Rishabh Pant. I think the work that has gone into his rehab to get back to that level of play at any standard is an amazing achievement. He deserves a lot of credit for his hard work and it’s great to see him on the field, captaining and playing well, batting and keeping.”
The Aussie broadcaster reckons that everyone is delighted to see Rishabh Pant back on the field after a long wait of more than a year. He further wished to see him back in India’s jersey for the upcoming T20 World Cup 2024.
“I saw the Delhi physio run out to the field a couple of times to check on him, so hopefully he’s pulled out okay, the positives are in the presentation he said he was fine and hopefully a day off or a couple of days off and he will be ready for the next game. He’s a wonderful player and everybody is happy that he’s back on the field and we want to see him play for Delhi, but we also want to see him come back and play for India as soon as possible.”
The T20 World Cup 2024 is set to begin on June 1 with the USA taking on Canada in the tournament opener. The elite tournament will be held across the venues in the USA and West Indies. India will begin its run in the event on June 5 against Ireland. The most anticipated India vs Pakistan clash will be held on June 09 in New York.