IND vs AUS | My mindset was to win the series for my team, claims Rishabh Pant
Pant played two crucial knocks in Australia
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Rishabh Pant, who played a match-winning and series-winning knock in Brisbane, has opined that he always wanted to win matches for India, and losing was never an option for him. The Indian wicket-keeper further added that he never wanted his family to feel disturbed because of his performance.
Rishabh Pant played the knock of his life in Brisbane that not only snatched the game away from the Aussies but also provided the Indian fans plenty to cheer about after India secured their second consecutive Border-Gavaskar Trophy Down Under. Pant played a crucial role ever since he was called up as Wriddhiman Saha replacement in the second Test and understandably so, his happiness knew no bounds.
“When I got out in the 2019 World Cup semifinal, it was a very disheartening moment for me. It was a big opportunity for me to do something special for India. I didn’t know when such a big moment would come again. I have always dreamt of winning matches from tough situations and doing something which is unbelievable. I never thought of scoring my own runs. A match-winning effort can be a knock of 20 runs or even a special catch,” Pant told ToI.
“Even when I got out for 97 on the last day in Sydney, I thought I could have won the match had I batted longer. It didn’t matter that I had to take two injections and sedatives before batting. I was in a zone and didn’t want to throw away opportunities. So I ensured I was there at the end in Brisbane,” Pant added.
“Losing is not an option, but winning is always the better option. The mindset was that I had to win the series for my team, then this tour would be truly memorable. At the end of the day, it’s all about winning matches for India. Nothing matches the high it gives you.”
Since the 2019 World Cup, Pant has been a constant disappointment in international cricket and has failed to muster enough steam to guarantee a go in all three formats. It rendered to be a big factor as he was in and out of the team far too often but the last Australia series might change the narrative. Pant stated that he couldn’t show his inner disappointment to his family but he is now happy that his family is smiling now.
“I knew I could not show my family and close ones that I was getting worried. Even I sensed they were a bit disturbed but we would never talk about it. It was a strange time. I don’t know exactly how they must have reacted when I hit the winning runs, but I can see them happy now. There’s nothing like making my mother, my coaches Tarak Sinha sir and Devendra Sharma sir happy.”
