Rishabh Pant back with a bang, tears apart South Africa A attack in comeback knock | Cricket News

Rishabh Pant (PTI Photo/Shailendra Bhojak)

Rishabh Pant’s return to red-ball cricket was nearly storybook perfect. Playing his second innings after a three-month injury lay-off, the India A captain fell just 10 runs short of a brilliant century on the fourth day of the unofficial Test against South Africa A at the BCCI’s Centre of Excellence in Bengaluru on Sunday.Resuming his innings from an overnight 64, Pant looked in fluent touch as he raced to 90 from just 113 balls. His knock, filled with 11 boundaries and four towering sixes, had the Bengaluru crowd on their feet before he was dismissed by Tiaan van Vuuren, holing out in search of another big hit. India A, chasing 275 for victory on the final day, were 208 for 6 at the time of writing, still needing 67 more runs.

Earlier, Pant had fractured his toe during the Anderson-Tendulkar Trophy in England earlier this year after being struck on the foot by a Chris Woakes delivery in the fourth Test. The injury was so painful that he had to be carried off the field and could not keep wickets for the rest of the game. Yet, in a moment that summed up his spirit, he returned to bat later in the innings, his foot strapped in a cast, to help India save the match.Reflecting on his recovery, Pant told BCCI in a video, “It was really challenging for me. I had that fracture in England and had to go through the whole process. The first part was about healing for six weeks, and then I came to the CoE. The healing went well.”He added, “I started my rehab slowly, did physio work at first, then began strength training, and finally moved into the second phase. Now I’m here fully recovered, thanks to the CoE team.”Speaking about staying mentally strong through recovery, Pant said, “Being positive is all about mindset. When you’re injured, it’s easy to get frustrated and lose energy. You have to find small things that make you happy, and keep doing them.”