Pant outshines Viv, Dhoni, Rohit in record-breaking knock

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July 12, 2025 20:23 IST

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Rishabh Pant

IMAGE: Rishabh Pant celebrates his half century. Photograph: Peter Cziborra/Reuters

Records tumbled at Lord’s as Rishabh Pant, despite an injured finger, blasted his way into the history books — overtaking legends like Vivian Richards, MS Dhoni, and Rohit Sharma in a single, audacious knock.

Despite battling a painful finger injury sustained on Day 1, Pant powered his way to a scintillating 74 off 112 balls, anchoring India’s charge in the morning session. His fearless batting lit up Lord’s, and his strokeplay carried statistical weight — rewriting several long-standing records.

 

Pant launched two massive sixes during his innings, taking his tally to 35 career sixes against England in Tests, surpassing the great Viv Richards (34) for the most by any batter against England in the format.

In the process, he also drew level with Rohit Sharma’s mark of 88 Test sixes for India, now joint-second only to Virender Sehwag (90). Notably, Pant has reached the milestone in just 46 Tests — 21 fewer than Rohit.

The 27-year-old also overtook MS Dhoni to become the highest run-scoring Indian wicketkeeper on a single tour of England, with 416 runs across three Tests. Dhoni’s 349-run effort in 2014 had stood as the benchmark for over a decade.

Pant’s form and impact go beyond numbers — he also became the first visiting wicketkeeper in history to score 400+ runs in a Test series in England, underlining his elite standing in red-ball cricket.

However, Pant's counterpunching innings came to an abrupt end at the stroke of lunch. Attempting a sharp single, he was undone by a brilliant piece of fielding from Ben Stokes, who fired in a direct hit from cover to catch Pant just short of his ground.

Despite the dismissal, Pant’s innings left an indelible mark — a mix of resilience, audacity, and record-smashing intent that reaffirmed his place among the game’s most dynamic Test performers.

 

 

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