"They are a little bit the same" - Ricky Ponting feels Rishabh Pant needs to play 50-60 Test matches to be compared with Adam Gilchrist

Former Australian captain Ricky Ponting has admitted there are some similarities between Rishabh Pant and Adam Gilchrist. The 23-year-old has earned the comparison due to his flamboyant style of play across all three formats of the game.

However, Ponting also noted that Pant has a long way to go before he can be seriously compared to Gilchrist. The former India U-19 vice-captain has been immensely backed by the national team's management but has to work on his shot selection and consistency.

Ponting, having seen Gilchrist and Pant from close quarters, revealed the similarities and differences between the two figures. In an exclusive interview with the ICC, he said:

"Yeah, [they are] little bit the same. I know Rishabh's really burst onto the scene, but let's just let him play his 50-60 Test matches first before we start making comparisons to one of the all-time great wicket-keeper batters."

On the subject, Ponting continued:

"But if you think about their personalities – Rishabh is a lot more outward, a lot louder, a lot noisier and ultra-competitive. Gilly was ultra-competitive as well, but a lot quieter and reserved, until he got his bat in his hand and then he became exactly the same as Rishabh."

Adam Gilchrist is arguably one of the greatest wicket-keeping batters in the history of the game. He opened the innings in shorter formats, forging a destructive all-left pair with Matthew Hayden. Holding a strike rate of 82 across 96 Test matches, he was a force to be reckoned with in the lower middle-order in the longest format.

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"Prithvi Shaw, Ruturaj Gaikwad, and Avesh Khan are the Indian youngsters to look out for" - Ricky Ponting

Ponting was also asked about the Indian youngsters to look out for, especially with the 15th edition of the IPL getting closer and the national team's transition phase. He named Delhi Capitals duo Prithvi Shaw and Avesh Khan, as well as reigning Orange Cap holder Ruturaj Gaikwad.

Claiming that he has not seen many better players than Shaw, Ponting said of the youngster:

"I hung on to one at the Delhi Capitals this year, one of our retained players is Prithvi Shaw, who we saw some absolute brilliance from through the IPL season last year. Everyone's known a bit about him for the last couple of years."

He added:

"I still think he is learning a lot about himself as a person and learning a lot about himself as a player. I am not sure I have seen many better to be totally honest."

Ponting concluded by praising Ruturaj Gaikwad and Avesh Khan. He said:

"The other one that I thought was absolutely outstanding and I have only seen him in T20 cricket, but that's Ruturaj Gaikwad from Chennai Super Kings. He ended up being a part of the winning IPL team, a young guy that got a chance at the start of the season. We have Avesh Khan at Delhi Capitals last year who had an unbelievably good IPL season. He has been included in a couple of Indian squads."

Khan and Gaikwad have been named in the Indian squad for the ongoing home series against the West Indies. While the pacer missed out on the ODI series, he is likely to get an opportunity in the T20I series and is expected to fetch a huge amount at the mega auction.

Ruturaj Gaikwad was part of the squad for the tour of South Africa, but was not in the playing XI in the ODI series. He recently tested positive for COVID-19 and had to miss the ongoing ODIs against the West Indies.