Rishabh Pant made his Test debut a memorable one by becoming the first Indian wicketkeeper to claim five catches in an innings on debut. The 20-year-old ensnared Alastair Cook, Keaton Jennings, Ollie Pope, Chris Woakes and Adil Rashid as England’s batting crumbled for a change against India’s seamers — in particular, Hardik Pandya, who claimed five wickets.
Pant also joined an elite club in Test cricket, becoming the fifth wicketkeeper ever to claim five or more catches in an innings on debut, after Wally Grout, Brian Taber and John MacLean of Australia, and Chris Read of England. Only Grout, among the five, has taken six catches.
Key highlights: England vs India, 3rd Test
Grout achieved the feat in Australia's 1957-58 tour of South Africa, in the second innings of the first Test in Johannesburg. He went on to play 51 Tests.
Exclusive club
Among Indians, Kiran More took five catches on debut, but across two innings. Nayan Mongia and Naman Ojha have four catches to their credit across two innings on Test debut.
Pant was drafted into the playing eleven at the expense of Dinesh Karthik, who had poor returns with the bat in the first two Tests. Wriddhiman Saha, India’s first choice wicketkeeper in Tests, is recuperating from a shoulder surgery he underwent in Manchester recently.
Pant scored 24 in his debut innings as India managed a first-innings score of 329.
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