Dravid backs Pant to succeed in Test cricket

TIL Desk Sports/ Fast-rising wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant has the required temperament and skills to transfer his shorter format success to the red ball cricket, India Under-19 and ‘A’ squads head coach Rahul Dravid said.

Earlier this week, the Delhi player was picked as the second choice wicket-keeper in the 18-member squad for the first three Tests of the five-match rubber against England. Pant was rewarded with the Test call-up following a successful run with the willow in the Indian Premier League (IPL).

It is his maiden call-up in the national Test squad and Dravid is backing him to deliver if chances come his way, adding that the 20-year-old adapted admirably to come out with crucial knocks when he was part of India ‘A’ tour.

“Rishabh was quite excellent on the tour. He is obviously a very talented player. He showed in three or four innings that he was willing to bat differently. We all know the way he bats. Even in the 2017-18 Ranji Trophy season when he got over 900 runs his S/R was 100 plus and we have seen him bat similarly in the IPL as well,” Dravid said in an interview posted on the website of Board of Control for Cricket in India (BCCI).