One for Posterity: When Rohit Sharma explained ‘significance of Gabba’ to young Pant

PTI, Oct 16, 2024, 2:43 PM IST

New Delhi: For some time, Rishabh Pant couldn’t understand why fans had gone hysterical after his unbeaten 89 against Australia at the Gabba in 2021 until Rohit Sharma stepped in to tell him that his knock was not just another match-winning effort in an epic Test.

A second string India, without its then regular skipper Virat Kohli, senior player KL Rahul and three main bowlers, had beaten Australia by three wickets at a venue which was considered a fortress for the home team which hadn’t lost a single game there since 1989.

It was a chase of 328, and Pant’s counter-attacking knock was not just a match-defining one. It was to find a place among the greatest innings by an Indian in adverse overseas conditions.

“Sometimes, there are performances that you remember for a lifetime, and one of them for me is the Gabba Test,” the 27-year-old told Star Sports’ ‘Star Nahi Far’ event.

Initially, it was just satisfaction of winning a tough Test for India but as time went by, Pant understood the magnitude of his achievement, something that Rohit had told him about.

“At the time, I didn’t realise how significant it was. Rohit bhai was there, and he told me, ‘You have no idea what you’ve done.’ I was like, ‘What have I done? My aim was just to win the match.’ Rohit bhai said, ‘Later, you’ll understand what you’ve done’,” he recalled.

“Now, whenever I hear people talking about that Gabba match, I understand what he meant and how important it was,” the Delhi player said.

No greater feeling than beating Australia

Pant has commanded the cricketing world’s awe and respect for coming back after recovering from a life-threatening car accident in 2022. This was after he made a name for himself Down Under for being a significant contributor to India’s back-to-back Test series wins.

His career-best 159 came in Sydney during the 2018-19 series.

In the 2021 series, he scored 97 in Sydney and an epic 89 not out in Brisbane to earn respect and adulation from both the fans and the opposition team.

“When you go to Australia, you have to work more on handling the bounce and short balls because the wickets are different there, and the atmosphere is different,” he explained.

“They don’t want you to win, which makes it more fun. There’s no greater feeling than going to Australia and beating them in their home.” What impresses Pant about Australia is their strategy to always hunt in a pack and the gutsy keeper-batter is a firm believer in counter-punching.

“In general, Australia fights as a team. They don’t give you anything easy, and they play aggressive cricket. I won’t throw the first punch, but if someone throws the first punch at me, I won’t hold back.

“That’s the kind of mentality you need to have when playing against them,” he said.