Rishabh Pant has been through a lot in the last 18 months. From being India’s best all-format player and the next potential Test captain, the wicketkeeper was restricted to the bed for months. He underwent multiple surgeries, had to learn how to walk again, couldn’t even brush his teeth on his own, and feared that he wouldn’t be able to play cricket ever again.
Nervous about facing people
Before leaving for the T20 World Cup, Rishabh Pant sat with his Delhi senior Shikhar Dhawan on his show ‘Dhawan Karenge’. The keeper recounted the struggles he had to face because of his accident and surgery. “I couldn’t even brush my teeth for two months, and for six to seven months, I suffered with unbearable pain. I couldn’t go to the airport because I was nervous about facing people in a wheelchair.”
T20 World Cup
“Self-belief and self-confidence are very important while recovering from an injury because there are people saying all sorts of things around you, and you, as an individual, have to think about what’s good for you. The accident was a life-changing experience for me. When I got up after it, I wasn’t even sure if I would be alive, but God was very kind to save me.
“Now that I’m making a comeback in cricket, more than feeling pressure, I’m excited. I feel this is kind of a second life, so I’m excited but also nervous,” Rishabh Pant concluded as he leaves for the T20 World Cup.