Watch: 'Angry' Rishabh Pant almost punches Ricky Ponting  

Delhi Capitals (DC) skipper Rishabh Pant didn’t have the kind of outing he would’ve wanted on his comeback. The second match of the Indian Premier League (IPL) took place between Punjab Kings (PBKS) and Delhi at the Maharaja Yadavindra Singh International Cricket Stadium in Mullanpur, Chandigarh.

After over 450 days, Rishabh Pant made a return to competitive cricket. The entire cricket fraternity was excited with his comeback and that was quite evident when he walked out to bat. The keeper-batter received a standing ovation from the crowd in Chandigarh. 

But, Rishabh Pant couldn’t make much impact with the bat in the game against the Punjab Kings. He played some gorgeous shots in his innings but his stay at the crease in his comeback match was limited to only 13 balls at the newly built Stadium in Chandigarh. 

Rishabh Pant was outfoxed by the slower delivery of Harshal Patel. The keeper-batter got out in the 13th over and managed just 18 runs in his innings. He batted with a strike rate of around 140 and hit 2 fours during his stay at the crease in the game against Punjab Kings. 

But what caught the attention of many was after Rishabh Pant got out, he was gutted with himself. The keeper-batter looked furious when he was sitting in the dugout. He was seen expressing his frustration by trying to punch Ricky Ponting, who consoled him. 

Here’s the video of the incident: 

Rishabh Pant after getting out after a long time!!
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.#PBKSvDC #dc #delhicapitals #RishabhPant #Rishabpant #rishabhpanth #rishabh #pant #gettingout #out #rickeyponting #ponting pic.twitter.com/8F9dNychin

— Aryan Bhardwaj (@HackSplitter) March 23, 2024

The comeback game didn’t go in Rishabh Pant’s way as Delhi Capitals lost the game by 4 wickets. They displayed a torrid performance with the bat but thanks to a cameo by Abishek Porel (32*) in the end, they managed a total of 174 runs on the board. 

With the ball, Delhi Capitals kept chipping in with wickets at regular intervals. They had reduced Punjab Kings to 100/4. But after that, they didn’t capitalize. Sam Curran (63) and Liam Livingstone (38*) batted magnificently and took their team to the four-wicket victory in the game. 

No excuses, having a bowler short was never good, but credit to PKBS for the way they played – Rishabh Pant after DC’s loss 

Rishabh Pant opened up about the loss his team faced in the game against Punjab Kings. He admitted that Ishant Sharma’s injury came as a huge blow to the team. He also talked about his comeback and also admitted that they didn’t perform well. Speaking to broadcasters, he stated: 

“I think Ishant’s injury was evident in the field, we were already one bowler short because of our batting, Abishek Porel did well to give us those extra runs, but we were always one bowler short. The boys did well to drag us back into the match at various stages. Was pretty nervous (on his comeback), there was a bit of tension, but I started to enjoy myself. 

“No excuses, having a bowler short was never good, but credit to PKBS for the way they played. He’s pretty new (on Porel), 3rd or 4th game (for him), the way he batted was very special, looking forward to more from him as the season moves forward.” 

Rishabh Pant will be next seen in action when Delhi Capitals will take on Rajasthan Royals on Thursday (28th March).