"He has his own computer, only he knows how it works": Shastri defines Pant's "USP"

Leeds [UK], June 21 (ANI): Former head coach and cricketer Ravi Shastri was impressed with "outrageous" Rishabh Pant, who dazzled at Headingley with a rollicking century on day two of the first Test against England.

Pant tormented the English bowling unit with his flamboyant strokeplay with a vast array of shots and robust defence. Through Pant's relentless onslaught, England got a taste of 'Bazball' with the southpaw applying his touch and enchanting the spectators with 'Pantball'.

He brought up his century in trademark style, dispatching the ball past the boundary rope with a stunning one-handed effort. The crowd roared in jubilation as Pant pulled off a somersault and warmly embraced captain Shubman Gill to celebrate his 7th Test century.

"What do you say about Pant?! I used the word outrageous yesterday, and nothing has changed. He plays the numbers game beautifully and plays the way he wants," Shastri said on Sky Sports.

It wasn't a usual all-guns blazing approach from Pant. He switched through gears when the phase of acceleration arrived. When the surface played tricks and allowed the ball to dance to the bowler's will, he negated the threat with his impeccable defensive technique.

"He will block for a bit and then decides he has to go after the bowler and shift gears. He has his own computer, and only he knows how it works. That's his USP. That's what puts bowlers under pressure and makes him box office, a real entertainer and a match winner," he added.

With his record-shattering display, Pant surpassed India's legendary captain MS Dhoni to become the player with the most Test centuries by an Indian wicketkeeper-batter and continued his mastery in South Africa, England, New Zealand and Australia (SENA) conditions. Pant boasts seven centuries, outdoing Dhoni's tally of six.

The 27-year-old levelled former Indian skipper Sourav Ganguly's record to have the joint third-most Test centuries in England (three each). The highest number of centuries by an Indian in England is by Rahul Dravid (6), followed by Sachin Tendulkar (4) and Dilip Vengasarkar (4).

Pant's blitzkrieg at Headingley was brought to an end by Josh Tongue. The Indian vice-captain was struggling with Tongue's inswing. He watched the ball land and decided to offer no shot. The ball nipped back sharply and pinned him in front of the stumps, forcing him to return with 134(178). (ANI)

(The story has come from a syndicated feed and has not been edited by the Tribune Staff.)