Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting says Pant is a fun-loving and energetic player. He spoke about the importance of letting Rishabh Pant be himself to get the most out of him. Ponting, having seen Gilchrist and Pant from close quarters, revealed the similarities and differences between the two figures.
“Yeah, little bit the same,” said Ponting. “I know Rishabh’s really burst onto the scene, but let’s just let him play his 50-60 Test matches first before we start making comparisons to one of the all-time great wicket-keeper batters. But if you think about their personalities – Rishabh is a lot more outward, a lot louder, a lot noisier and ultra-competitive. Gilly was ultra-competitive as well, but a lot quieter and reserved, until he got his bat in his hand and then he became exactly the same as Rishabh” ,speaking on The ICC Review, Ponting said.
Ponting has worked closely with Pant during his time as coach of the Delhi Capitals, Pant captained to the playoffs in his first season in the role in 2021. “It’s a bit hard to put a finger on him as a player or a character. What you see with his cricket is exactly what he is off the field. He is fun-loving and energetic. He is not much of a risk-taking guy off the field; he is always a fun guy to be around. He is always laughing loud, and you always know when he is in the room. You know when he is playing cards or you know when he is about to walk into the team meeting.” Ponting added.
Ponting feels that with Pant having a lot of scores of 90 in Test cricket, he must have followed the same approach. “Rishabh will be exactly the same. If you look at Rishabh – I am not sure how many Test hundreds he’s got – but he has a few 90s in there. And he’s actually got out trying to bring up his hundred with a six. That’s the good and the bad, right?”
Ponting further added.