Pant goes past Dhoni for most Test centuries by an Indian wicketkeeper, earns accolades
Leeds, Jun 21 (PTI): Rishabh Pant on Saturday went past MS Dhoni for the most centuries by an Indian wicketkeeper in Test cricket, bringing up his seventh on the second day of the series opener against England here, and earning praise from the legendary Sachin Tendulkar and Sunil Gavaskar.
Pant struck a six off the first ball of the 100th over of India’s first innings, clearing the fence off Shoaib Bashir to bring up the milestone.
It was his first century since September 2024 when he scored 109 against Bangladesh.
In 90 Tests, Dhoni had scored 4,876 runs with six tons and 33 fifties at an average of 38.09 and remains the highest run-scorer as an Indian wicketkeeper-batter in Tests.
Pant, who completed 3,000 runs during this innings of 134 off 178 balls (12x4; 6x6), also has 15 fifties in 44 Tests and averages nearly 44.
The third in this list is Wriddhiman Saha with two centuries, followed by Syed Kirmani and Farokh Engineer with two each.
Nayan Mongia has also scored one century.
Sachin hails Pant's 'clever' strategy
Pant’s effort earned accolades from Tendulkar, who lauded the wicketkeeper-batter's paddle sweep as a smart use of technique.
"Rishabh's falling paddle sweep is not accidental. It is intentional and extremely clever. Going down with the shot allows him to get under the ball and scoop it over leg slip with control," Tendulkar wrote on his social media handle.
Tendulkar also highlighted the psychological tactics deployed by Pant and Gill against Bashir during their 209-run fourth wicket stand.
"Also noticed something interesting during Bashir’s spell. Shubman and Rishabh were speaking loudly in Hindi between deliveries.
"It wasn’t just casual talk. They were playing mind games with the bowler, trying to disrupt his rhythm. These minor details may not appear on the scoreboard, but they can have a significant impact on the game," added Tendulkar.
Gavaskar's shift from 'stupid' to 'superb'
Saturday's knock also came as a moment of redemption for Pant, who had come under heavy criticism earlier this year during India’s Test series defeat in Australia, especially for his rash shot selections.
Back then, Gavaskar had slammed Pant’s shot selection with the stinging remark “stupid, stupid, stupid” echoing through the commentary box.
But at Headingley on Saturday, as Pant raised his bat and made the signature front-flip celebration after reaching the milestone, it was Gavaskar again -- this time exclaiming “superb, superb, superb!” on air, commentating alongside Harsha Bhogle.
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Senior civic official caught taking Rs 42,000 bribe in Navi Mumbai
Thane (PTI): The Anti-Corruption Bureau (ACB) on Tuesday caught a senior official of the Navi Mumbai Municipal Corporation (NMMC) while allegedly accepting a bribe of Rs 42,000 from a contractor to clear his dues, an official said.
Deputy Commissioner Kailas Somnath Gaikwad of the NMMC was caught accepting a bribe at his office in the civic headquarters, said Deputy Superintendent of Police Dharmaraj Sonke of the ACB's Navi Mumbai unit.
Gaikwad had allegedly demanded the money from a contractor to clear a bill related to work carried out for the encroachment department, he said.
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"The complainant had executed work in the Airoli division, and a bill of approximately Rs 21 lakh was approved. The alleged accused, however, demanded 2 per cent of the bill value from the contractor to clear the dues," Sonke said.
The ACB verified the complaint before carrying out the operation to nab the accused official, he said.
A case has been registered against the accused, and a further probe is underway, the official said.
