Pant turns cricket into a theater. A theater with an audience in millions. And he’s the entertainer. It’s a box-office show. Not since Virat Kohli has an Indian captured the imagination of people like this. Pant’s giving near heart attacks to the team management. Rohit Sharma is putting his hands on his head. But inside the mind of the 23-year-old, all that matters is crossing the line. The line, which hasn't been crossed since 1988. The line, if crossed, with the audacity to be talked about for ages. Make demi-gods and heroes out of cricket players. It's day five, we are at the Gabba. Last time, a team needed Gordon Greenidge, Vivian Richards, Desmond Haynes, Richie Richardson, Malcolm Marshall, Curtly Ambrose, Courtney Walsh, Patrick Patterson, to win a Test in what is Australia’s fortress. 

But two days have passed since the Gabba Test. Dust has settled down. We are back to our senses. And the English challenge is approaching. As much as everyone rejoiced in Pant's batting heroics, one can't delay the inevitable for long. Let’s address the elephant in the room - Pant's wicket-keeping.

To put things into perspective, according to a CricViz article, "Pant’s keeping is the second-worst in the world since his debut. He drops more catches than everyone other than Mushfiqur Rahim and Shane Dowrich, and costs his side more runs than almost anyone. Pant drops about as many as he catches when it comes to keeping against spin." 

To simply put it, Pant's keeping at the Test level is unacceptable for a top side and now he has started bottling up dollies as seen in the MCG and the SCG Tests respectively. And it won't be sustainable to have him as a gloveman that too in Tests simply because he scores more as eventually it will catch up with the team. But Rishabh Pant's batting heroics in Australia gives us a fair indication that he's still good enough to play as a specialist batsman. 

Before anything, let’s see how he has fared in SENA Tests, which is the biggest marker to assess an Indian batsman given how well they fare at other places. This is how Indian batsmen have done in the last five years:

Yes, that’s how good the left-hander has been, overall second best and even better than experienced specialist batsmen like Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, and Hanuma Vihari. 

Even if we look beyond statistics, there is no one quite like Rishabh Pant in India's middle-order. He gives a cutting edge to the line-up as for him, taking the game to the bowlers and playing aggressively comes naturally. Going down the track to smash spinners is as customary to him as a front-foot defense for others. With players like him, there isn't a score that can't be chased down in Tests. He might not win Tests single-handedly, which no one does, but can be a decisive factor by playing a knock that sets up the game or finishes a tough chase if given a platform. And both the scenarios were on display in SCG and Gabba respectively. 

Similarly at the Gabba, India needed 100 off the last 20 overs and that too with a brand new ball as 80 overs were done. Pujara got out, leaving Pant with an out-of-form Mayank Agarwal and two inexperienced batsmen who will be playing their second and third Test innings respectively with a 9,10 and 11, all as good as no.11. The Test had a DRAW written all over it. But Pant had some other plans. In risk-free manner, he scores 55 off 54 and helps India win with a contribution of 33 off 47 at the expense of three wickets from others. But he was the man calming others and orchestrating a tricky chase. He finishes with 89* off merely 138 deliveries. 

Temperament and Maturity 

These two things have always been in question with Pant. But the Australia tour proved otherwise. After a whirlwind SCG knock, where he hammered bowlers all around the park, the Brisbane Test proved he can bat in other gears too. The Gabba 89* was a calculated assault, where he didn't manufacture strokes but played on the merit of the ball, mostly, leaving the balls outside off-stump, defending the ball on stumps and playing percentage shots. As enthralling as SCG knock was, it isn't sustainable at this level if consistency is an aim. Now that Pant showed he has both the gears is what gives us a fair idea about his maturity and know-how of his game as a batsman.

Ageing team and possibilty of two-wicket-keepers 

Four of India's first-choice top six batsmen in Tests - Rohit Sharma (33), Cheteshwar Pujara (32), Virat Kohli (32) and Ajinkya Rahane (32) - are in their 30s and not getting any younger. Given Rohit and Virat's hectic white-ball schedule, how long they play is something that would be interesting to see. And Pant can be a long-term investment in this sense as well. He has a good 10-12 years of cricket ahead of him and given his enormous talent, there's no reason why he can't play consistently for India.

Even if we compare Rishabh Pant to someone like Hanuma Vihari, who will be his direct competition for a place in the middle-order when he gets fit, and in case, India doesn’t find the left-hander suitable for keeping, Pant's numbers dazzle. 

The southpaw averages 43.52 in Tests overall in comparison to Vihari's 32.84, having played six more innings than him. Even in terms of away record, Pant (39.30) has a better average than Vihari (34.11). Vihari has struck just one ton while Pant has two already and batting higher in the order, and also showed how he can take his game to the next level if given more time in the middle with ample backing from the dressing room. There are compelling reasons for India to consider Pant as a specialist batsman given his mediocre to poor wicket-keeping.