IPL 2021: Rishabh Pant Showed A Lot Of Positivity, Building The Team, And Backing It Well, Says Pravin Amre

Delhi Capitals assistant coach Pravin Amre has had quite the coaching career thus far as he had played an instrumental role in the development of several players. The likes of Suresh Raina, Robin Uthappa, and Ajinkya Rahane are some of the few to have benefitted from his mentorship. Prithvi Shaw and Rishabh Pant, having spent time with Amre at the Delhi Capitals, have also derived the advantages. The former Indian cricketer lauded Pant for displaying maturity in the last few months, especially as the captain of the Capitals.

Rishabh Pant has become a crucial member of India’s squad across formats in the last few months, proving an instrumental element in the national team reaching the World Test Championship’s final. The 23-year old, having chosen to captain the Delhi Capitals in IPL 2021, did commendably well in his first stint as the leader. The keeper-batsman proved to be most successful until the tournament’s indefinite suspension, leading them to the summit with six wins in eight matches.

Pravin Amre recalls seeing Rishabh Pant hitting sixes effortlessly, mainly on slow tracks and recognized that he is a different player. Amre stated that the last few months have showcased Pant’s maturity, learning from his experiences, and conceded he is enjoying himself as a keeper and a key batsman for his side. The former Indian batsman pointed out even though Pant was not prepared for captaincy, he showed plenty of positivity by backing it and credited the youngster for the Capitals achieving success under him.

“I have seen him from Day 1 when he came to Delhi Capitals selection trials from the India under-19 team and effortlessly hit sixes. His specialty is to hit sixes on slow tracks. That’s something special when the bounce is low. It struck me then that this boy was something different. What we saw in the last six months for Team India was that he was showing more maturity, learning with experience. He is now in a good space, enjoying himself as a wicketkeeper and as a key batsman for the Indian team. He is also enjoying his role as a finisher. This year, when he came to the IPL, he was not that prepared for captaincy after Shreyas Iyer got injured. But he showed a lot of positivity, building this team, backing it and being on the top. As a team gets successful, you have to give credit to the captain. In this format, the captain is more answerable than the coaches. DC won six of the eight matches this IPL. Credit goes to the captain as this format is driven by the captain,” Pravin Amre told News18.com.

A major role was played by Ricky in handling the team: Pravin Amre

When asked Pravin Amre about his interactions with the keeper-batsman during training sessions, he said that Rishabh Pant joined the Delhi Capitals only a few days before the tournament and said that head coach Ricky Ponting has known him for years. The 53-year old commented that his role was limited this year with the Capitals and Ponting handled the significant part.

“To be honest, he was busy with Team India. He joined DC at the start of IPL. The head coach is Ricky Ponting, who has known Rishabh for years. It is important that the captain and head coach have a good relationship. My role was very limited. A major role was played by Ricky in handling the team,” he added.

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