Image Credit- BCCI
In his first game
back following a near-fatal automobile accident in December 2022, Rishabh Pant
had a brief appearance and scored a plodding 28 in his second game. However,
against Chennai Super Kings, Pant scorched a 32-ball 51 to help the Delhi
Capitals record their first victory of the year.
At one point, he was 23 off 23 but blasted his next eight balls for 28 runs,
including a long-off skier.
“See, as a
cricketer I don’t think about [feeling like being back], but at the same time I
have to give my 100% each and every day,” Pant said at the post-match
presentation ceremony. “So what I did was I took my time initially because
I haven’t played much cricket in the last one-and-a-half to two years so I
thought I have to give myself enough time.
“At the same time I kept believing that I could change the match at the
end.”
Then he was asked how long he had waited to be back on the field.
“One-and-a-half years,” Pant said. “Because every day I love to
be on the field and this is something I have depended my life on.
“Yes, that one-and-a-half years was a wait but at the same time you’ve got
to keep doing what you can as a cricketer and keep learning from it.”
Pant said he never
worried about not being able to play cricket again.
“I think I always had self-belief that whatever happens in life, I need to
be back on the ground,” he said. “That was the thought process and I
never thought about anything else.”