Rishabh Pant has long been seen as the natural successor to MS Dhoni as India’s wicketkeeper. Since Dhoni’s retirement in 2020, no other keeper has made himself a regular across all three formats the way Pant has. Aggressive, fearless, and capable of changing games on his own, Pant has become one of the most important players in the Indian Cricket Team.
Having already established himself as a match-winner at every level, Pant is now entering a new phase of his career. He has been named the vice-captain of India’s Test team and will play a key leadership role on the upcoming tour of England. Now in the prime years of his career, Pant is transitioning from a young talent to a senior leader in Indian cricket.
Rishabh Pant Stats: Batting
| Format | Matches | Inns | Runs | Balls | High Score | Avg | SR | NO | 4s | 6s | 50s | 100s | 200s |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tests | 43 | 75 | 2948 | 4004 | 159* | 42.11 | 73.62 | 15 | 320 | 73 | 15 | 6 | 0 |
| ODIs | 31 | 27 | 871 | 820 | 125* | 33.50 | 106.21 | 1 | 81 | 26 | 5 | 1 | 0 |
| T20Is | 76 | 66 | 1209 | 950 | 65* | 23.25 | 127.26 | 14 | 111 | 44 | 3 | 0 | 0 |
| IPL | 125 | 123 | 3553 | 2407 | 128* | 34.16 | 147.61 | 20 | 319 | 170 | 19 | 2 | 0 |
Rishabh Pant Stats: Wicketkeeping
| Format | Matches | Catches | Stumpings |
|---|---|---|---|
| Tests | 43 | 149 | 15 |
| ODIs | 31 | 27 | 01 |
| T20Is | 76 | 40 | 11 |
| IPL | 125 | 80 | 24 |
Rishabh Pant Career Overview
Rishabh Pant was born on 4 October 1997 near Roorkee, Uttarakhand. To pursue his cricketing dreams, he moved to Delhi, where he impressed in junior and Under-19 cricket. His first major breakthrough came during the 2016 U-19 World Cup, where he smashed the fastest fifty in tournament history against Nepal.
Around the same time, Rishabh Pant made his List A and first-class debut for Delhi in the Vijay Hazare Trophy and Ranji Trophy. In the very next domestic season, he created history by scoring 308 runs in a single innings against Maharashtra, becoming the youngest Indian to score a triple century in first-class cricket. In 2017, at just 19 years of age, he was named Delhi’s List A captain, taking over from Gautam Gambhir.
The year 2016 proved to be a turning point in Pant’s career. He was picked by Delhi Daredevils in the IPL on the same day he scored a century in the U-19 World Cup. He also registered his first IPL fifty that season. However, it was in IPL 2017 that he truly caught the attention of fans, scoring 266 runs, including a stunning 97.
Rishabh Pant reached elite levels in IPL 2018, producing one of the greatest seasons ever by a batter. He scored 684 runs in 14 matches at an average of 54.61 and a strike rate of 173.60, which remains his best IPL season to date.
Pant made his T20I debut for India in February 2017, playing purely as a batter as MS Dhoni was still keeping wickets. His Test and ODI debuts came in 2018, during India’s tour of England. In the final Test of that series, Pant scored a historic century, becoming the first Indian wicketkeeper to score a Test hundred in England.
The next couple of years were challenging. While Pant continued to perform in domestic cricket, his international form dipped, raising concerns, especially after MS Dhoni’s retirement. However, everything changed during the 2020–21 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia.
With the series level at 1–1, Pant played a brilliant 97 at Sydney, helping India secure a famous draw. In the final Test at The Gabba, he produced one of the most iconic innings in Indian cricket history, scoring 97 on the final day* to guide India to a historic series win. He was named Player of the Match, and from that point on, Pant became a permanent fixture in the Indian team.
In 2021, Pant was named captain of Delhi Capitals in the IPL and led the team to the playoffs in his first season. Although his captaincy stint did not bring major success, his value remained high. Ahead of the 2025 IPL season, Pant was released by Delhi and bought by Lucknow Super Giants for ₹27 crore, making him the most expensive player in IPL history and their new captain.
In December 2022, Pant survived a serious car accident, narrowly escaping with his life. His recovery took nearly 15 months, and he made his much-awaited return to competitive cricket during the IPL 2024.
Soon after his comeback, Pant was part of the Indian team that won the ICC T20 World Cup 2024, after which he once again became a regular across formats. Following Rohit Sharma’s retirement from Test cricket, Shubman Gill was named Test captain, and as one of the most experienced players in the squad, Rishabh Pant is now India’s vice-captain in Test cricket, ready to take on a major leadership role.
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