Rishabh Pant: 'You need double hundreds to get noticed'

"I got out on 146 in the last match. What’s the difference in getting out immediately after a century or after crossing 150? In today’s world, a value of a century is not much. You need double hundreds to get noticed," said Rishabh Pant.

Rishabh Pant's aggressive style of batting and glovework prompts his team-mates to call him “mini-Gilly”, referring to former Australian wicket-keeper Adam Gilchrist.

Rishabh Pant is one of the several boys, who moved from a hinterland to a big city to pursue their cricket dreams. He made his debut for Delhi last October. Ever since, Pant has grown as a batsman-wicketkeeper, earned fame and money, thanks to his consistent performances in the U-19 World Cup and Indian Premier League (IPL).

With Tarak Sinha, one of the most successful and methodical coaches in Indian cricket, as his mentor, Pant had been tasked to prove his mettle at the first-class level. While he scored a hundred against Assam in last week’s season-opener, he was upset for throwing it away on 146.

"Only hundreds don’t work in cricket these days,” said Pant, who celebrated his 19th birthday last week. “I got out on 146 in the last match. What’s the difference in getting out immediately after a century or after crossing 150? In today’s world, a value of a century is not much. You need double hundreds to get noticed."

Pant moved from Roorkee in Haridwar district of Uttarakhand to Delhi, four years ago, on the insistence of Sinha, who has produced a battery of international cricketers over the last four decades. Since then, he has been improving his skills as batsman-wicketkeeper.

“Discipline. That’s the key. Tarak sir keeps telling me to be disciplined in all aspects.”

His aggressive style of batting and glovework prompts his team-mates to call him “mini-Gilly”, referring to former Australian wicket-keeper Adam Gilchrist. If Pant remains as focussed on the game and keeps his feet on the ground, he could emulate the great Gilchrist, who's his idol.