After ending IPL with 118* vs RCB, LSG skipper Rishabh Pant says he’ll take few days off, start prep for India’s England tour in good frame of mind
LSG skipper Rishabh Pant during his 118 not out vs RCB in Lucknow on Tuesday. Pic/PTI
For the beleaguered Rishabh Pant, getting a century in the last IPL league match was better late than never.
Though it didn’t serve much purpose for the already-eliminated Lucknow Super Giants, for him personally, it was gold. Pant had been struggling with the bat right through the tournament, with just one half-century in 13 games. But his innings par excellence against Royal Challengers Bengaluru on Tuesday has come at the right time, ensuring he will travel to England for the five-match Test series “in a better frame of mind.”
Multiple roles
Named vice-captain and slated to play all the matches as wicketkeeper-batsman, he needed to get a big innings under his belt considering his roles as stumper, batter and vice-captain is going to be crucial for the team as they are short on experience after the retirements of Rohit Sharma and Virat Kohli.
“[I] just want to switch off for a few days, not think about cricket, then the England series is coming up and just preparing for that in a good frame of mind,” the LSG captain said during the post-match presentation at the Ekana Stadium after scoring his second IPL century after seven years. His first was an unbeaten 128 for Delhi Capitals against SRH in Delhi in 2018.
‘Feeling confident’
Asked about his knock (118 not out) vs RCB, Pant said, “I was feeling confident with each match, but it [a big knock] just didn’t come. Today, I made sure if I start well, I get a big one. Like all experienced players do, whenever you get a start, you try to make it as big as possible. I was trying to play the field, looking for gaps and keeping it simple. That’s was something I kept in mind,” he added.
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