Rishabh Pant is a multifaceted player who excels as a batsman, a wicketkeeper, a leader, a mood-lifter, a record-breaker, a rebel, etc. He draws crowds whether he is keeping wickets, batting, or just being around. Pant is a complete entertainer when you combine it with his humorous and intelligent one-liners while he is standing behind the wickets and giving bowlers advice. But amid all of these, Pant the athlete’s physical talent stands out as one of the most distinctive qualities that frequently goes overlooked. Pant is a highly skilled acrobat originally recognised by Shankar Basu, a former strength and conditioning coach for India.
Recently in the famous podcast by Ranveer Allahabadia on his Youtube channel BeerBiceps, Shankar Basu said, “ I remember seeing Rishabh in Sri Lanka. He came to the Nidahas Trophy and before in the West Indies. In the Nidahas Trophy, I remember telling him that you know you’re an extraordinary gymnast. Please call your gymnastics coach and thank him for what you are doing now. He was like ‘What?’. He was flummoxed. He can do a kip-up, front flip, and backflip. You must have seen it on television. And he has got that explosive ability because of that,”
During the home Test series between India and England in the first part of last year, Pant is notorious for performing a kip-up. According to Basu, gymnastics may significantly contribute to an athlete’s growth. In fact, the former member of India’s coaching staff in gymnastics may very well be the reason why Pant stands out from the rest of his contemporaries, as demonstrated by the example of how a former Indian cricketer and his son are benefiting from it even today.
He added,” I think he has done a lot of gymnastics in his formative years. Same thing with Sridharan Sriram’s son. He wanted to start training. I said ‘Sriram, put him in gymnastics’, and apparently, he is playing very well now. Gymnastics play a major role in the development of an athlete. Not all of them will get the opportunity to do that, but if you are able to from a very young age, nothing like it,”
