Coming into bat when the Indian cricket team was struggling at 80/4, Rishabh Pant wasted little time to get into his groove as he brought up his third Test century in 115 balls.
Forging a timely 113-run stand with Washington Sundar, Pant hit 13 boundaries and two sixes to take the control away from England’s hand as India led by 89 runs at the end of Day 2 at the Motera Stadium.
Twitter couldn’t get enough of Pant’s brave and cavalier knock that hogged all the limelight.
Rishabh Pant brings up his hundred with a SIX 💥
— ICC (@ICC) March 5, 2021
A sensational knock from the India batsman!#INDvENG | https://t.co/6OuUwURcgX pic.twitter.com/b04djHMikJ
Rishabh Ridiculous Pant 🤯#INDvENG
— ¶ Mahesh ¶ (@CloudyMahesh) March 5, 2021
#RishabhPantpic.twitter.com/BlfHJcDTxV
Rishabh Pant, you mad genius! Stepping out and hitting Anderson. 😂😂 #INDvENG #INDvsENG #RishabhPant #testcricket
— Tarun Makhni (@MakhniTarun) March 5, 2021
Stokes is giving his everything!!
— Shubham Misra 🧠 (@SBM_4007) March 5, 2021
Whatta player!!
But Pant has countered everything thrown at him!! This guy is crazy!! ABSOLUTE MADNESS!!🤪🤪@benstokes38 @RishabhPant17 @bhogleharsha #INDvsENG #INDvENG
Sundar played a significant inning late in the batting order yet again, as he remained unbeaten on 60 runs, his third fifty-plus score for the nation, at the end of Day 2.
The left-handers are having a party in Ahmedabad!
— ESPNcricinfo (@ESPNcricinfo) March 5, 2021
A top knock - his third fifty in only six Test innings - from Washington Sundar 👏https://t.co/QzjBfWfJck | #INDvENG pic.twitter.com/AvnWhj6nBJ
While India’s lower batting order bailed the team out yet again, fans turned to the middle order stars, Virat Kohli and Cheteshwar Pujara, who failed to fire yet again. After Pujara fell to Jack Leach in the morning session, captain Kohli was dismissed for a duck leaving his team in a precarious position once again.
Most Ducks in World Test Championship (Indians)
— CricBeat (@Cric_beat) March 5, 2021
4 - Virat Kohli*
4 - Jasprit Bumrah
3 - Mohd Shami
3 - C Pujara#INDvENG
Pujara hasn't got a Test 100 since Jan 2019.
— Yash Mittal 🇮🇳 (@im_yash2307) March 5, 2021
Virat hasn't got a Test 100 since Nov 2019.
Rahane hasn't scored a Test 100 on home soil since 2016.
Shambles.
Watch the Reaction of my sister after Virat Kohli has been Got Out by Ben stocks. 📷 @BCCI
— Sujal Jaiswal (@sujal_jaiswal16) March 5, 2021
Virat 0(7) 😂 Duck#INDvsEND #KingKohli #ViratKohli pic.twitter.com/FIACpJZfqC
Unlike Lyon, Leach has not allowed Pujara to come down the pitch & defend him too much. All Pujara’s dismissal this series against Leach have been when he has been forced to defend from the crease. #INDvsENG
— Sanjay Manjrekar (@sanjaymanjrekar) March 5, 2021
With hosts India in firm control of the test match after Day 2, Kohli and Co. will look to wrap it up as fast as possible and seal a place in the World Test Championship final.
Feature Image Courtesy: AFP/ Sajjad Hussain