Watch: Australia stars snub Virat Kohli, crown Rishabh Pant as King of Sledging

On a special day when the cricketing world celebrated Rishabh Pant's birthday on Friday (October 4), Star Sports took to social media to share a captivating video that quickly garnered attention. In this special montage, some of Australia’s most prominent cricketers gave Pant an unexpected title.

The video featured an all-star lineup of Australian players, including captain Pat Cummins, Steve Smith, Usman Khawaja, Marnus Labuschagne, Travis Head, Nathan Lyon, Mitchell Starc, and Josh Hazlewood, and all of them agreed on one thing: Pant is undoubtedly the player who engages in the most banter and sledging on the field.

On his Birthday, Rishabh Pant honored by Australian stars for his spirited banter

The video began with Pant being dubbed the most sledging man. The viral clip showed Australian players’ amusing encounters with Pant, recounting how the young wicketkeeper-batter rattled opponents with his quick wit and fearless attitude. From clever one-liners to cheeky jibes, Pant’s presence on the field has become synonymous with spirited banter.

Later, in the video, Rishabh Pant shared insights about his sledging experiences during the 2018-19 Border-Gavaskar Trophy in Australia. The left-handed batter has explained that he enjoys engaging in banter on the field, but he approaches it with a level of politeness, preferring to respond when the opposition starts the verbal exchanges with him.

Rishabh Pant, who has emerged as a key wicketkeeper-batter for India across the formats, was particularly vocal during the 2018-19 Test series in Australia, targeting players like Paine, Lyon, Cummins, Khawaja, and Smith. He notably referred to Paine as the "temporary captain" after he took over the leadership role following Smith's suspension.

Main (sledging) pyaar se karta hun: Rishabh Pant

His sledged Paine by saying, “Then I said a few things. Temporary captain. Have you heard the word temporary captain? Ever? Among? Have you heard the word? Special appearance today, boy. Come on. No responsibility today from captain, boy. Running away always. Always running away, boy.”

Rishabh Pant further said in the video: “Koi sochke sledge nahin karta yaar. Mera hai ki mujhe koi bole mujhe pasand nahin hai. Toh main pyaar se karta hoon. Toh woh mereko bolne lag gaye. Woh log vahi bol rahe they, 'Big MS is there', khelne aaja T20, Hobart se ek badhiya apartment deta hoon, mere bacche ko babysit kariyo.

Maine bhi phir ek do cheezein bol di. Nobody plans and does it. But I don't like it when someone does it, so I sledge politely. They were saying things like 'Big MS is here, 'Come and play T20 cricket in Hobart, you'll get a good apartment, babysit my kids'. I also said a few things.)”

Watch the amusable video here:

"Main (sledging) pyaar se karta hu!" 🤭

Never change, @RishabhPant17 😂 Once again, wishing you a Pant-astic year ahead! 🥳

See him soon in the #ToughestRivalry! #AUSvINDOnStar, starts NOV 22! pic.twitter.com/TIbRLQoTH3

— Star Sports (@StarSportsIndia) October 4, 2024

Notably, Rishabh Pant recently smashed a record-breaking century in the home Test series and played a key role in Team India’s 2-0 Test series win over Bangladesh. He will be next seen in action in the three-match Test series against New Zealand.