Not too long ago, Rishabh Pant was doing kip-ups while wicketkeeping for India. Unfortunately for him and cricket fans, an accident he suffered in December 2022 has kept him outside of the sport for 15 months. Now that he’s going to return to the cricket field on March 23 against the Punjab Kings, the staff at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) has revealed that Pant’s athletic abilities are the very reason he’s recovered so quickly.
Nishanta Bordoloi, the strength and conditioning coach at the NCA, revealed that Pant’s gymnastic background is the reason behind his return to cricket in just 15 months. Talking with bcci.tv, he said:
“One thing was that Rishabh has a background in gymnastics, which was a very big asset for us because there are a few things that come naturally to him.”
“Anytime he would feel he couldn’t move, he could tumble or roll over back to his feet again. Which was so much of an added advantage for him. The beginning phase was to get foundational strength in him, making his body understand what the movements are like. It’s completely reconstructed thing, and once it’s reconstructed, it takes a lot of mind and body connection. The neural system needs to understand; the muscles and tendons have to function,” he further added.
Meanwhile, Thulasi Yuvraj, a physiotherapist at the NCA, talked about how strong Rishabh Pant is mentally. He said:
“The mental strength and confidence inside him made us give our 100 percent in doing the rehab part for him. The doctors believed that he may take up to two years. Once he came to NCA, it was like a progressive phase for him.”
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