The comparison between Rishabh Pant and MS Dhoni has always been a hot topic of discussion. Even though the former India captain has retired from international cricket, there are some who can’t help but draw parallels between Pant and Dhoni due to their similar attacking style of batting.
However, if there is one person who cannot stand these comparisons is Pant himself, reveals Nitish Rana. The KKR batsman recently stated that it really bugs Pant when people compare him to Dhoni since the wicketkeeper batsman feels he is nowhere near the India legend.
“He admires Mahi bhai a lot, to the extent that he sometimes says: ‘If there’s someone I want to see while awake and sleeping it will be Mahi bhai.’ He has even said to me, ‘Why are people comparing me with Mahi bhai, I am not worthy of comparison,’ and while folding his hands, ‘Stop comparing me with Mahi bhai, take my bat and everything else. I don’t want to play, but don’t compare me with Mahi bhai.’ He is like a God to him,” Rana told India TV Cricket.
Rana credited Pant for the tremendous turnaround he was able to produce. Out of the team for his inconsistent show, Pant roared back to form during the Test series in Australia and everything changed from there. Pant’s confidence is at an all-time high right now, but even when things weren’t going his way, Rana explained how he was impressed seeing the wicketkeeper batsman’s strong grit, determinant self-belief.
“His strength is his self-belief. He never leaves that self-belief wherever he goes and whatever format he plays. I remember there was a time when people started criticizing him but he used to tell me: ‘I am just one big innings away, the day I play that knock, everyone will go silent and I believe I am going to play that innings very soon.’ The next match, he made a hundred something, it was during the last (2018-19) Australian tour,” recalls Rana.
“Then he called me back and shared those memes and told me: ‘See, this is how people change. First, they used to say this and now see what they are saying.’ He’s very positive in his life and has immense self-belief and that’s his biggest strength.”
