6 records and milestones Rishabh Pant has already achieved

The fourth Test between India and Australia in Sydney is only Rishabh Pant’s ninth Test match and incredibly, he has already reached many milestones and broken several records in Test cricket.

Not only is he proving to be a long-term replacement for Mahendra Singh Dhoni but he is also proving to be a reliable batsman for India with two centuries and two fifties to his name in only fourteen innings.

So, here are six Test match records Rishabh Pant has already broken.

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#1 First Indian batsman to get off the mark in Test cricket with a six

Pant scored 114 against England at the Oval

Pant made his Test cricket debut in the third Test at Trent Bridge during India’s tour of England in 2018. He got off the mark in only his second ball by smashing leg-spinner Adil Rashid for a six straight down the ground.

In the process, he became the first Indian player to get off the mark in Test cricket with a six. He is also only the 12th batsman overall to do so after Eric Freeman, Carlisle Best, Keith Dabengwa, Dale Richards, Shafiul Islam, Jahurul Islam, Al-Amin Hossain, Mark Craig, Dhananjaya De Silva, Kamrul Islam Rabbi and Sunil Ambris.

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#2 First Indian wicketkeeper to score a century in England

In the final innings of the fifth and final Test of India’s tour of England, Pant scored his maiden Test century. Although it was in a losing cause and wickets fell around him during that innings, Pant scored 114 in only 146 balls and even brought up his century with a six. His innings consisted of fifteen fours and four sixes.

His century at the Oval was the first by an Indian wicketkeeper in England. The previous best score by an Indian wicketkeeper was MS Dhoni’s 92 at the Oval.

Incredibly, he also became the second youngest wicketkeeper to score a century in Test cricket at the age of 20 years and 342 days. The youngest keeper to score a Test century is also an Indian and the record belongs to Ajay Ratra who scored his maiden century aged 20 years and 148 days.

#3 Most catches by a wicketkeeper for India in a Test

Pant took 11 catches in the first Test against Australia

During India’s victory in the first Test against Australia at the Adelaide, Pant took eleven catches Six of them were in the first innings and five in the second innings.

He overtook Wriddhiman Saha’s record of 10 catches in a Test match which was achieved at Cape Town early in 2018. Pant’s eleven catches at Adelaide is also the joint-most by a wicketkeeper in a Test match equalling the record of Jack Russell and AB de Villiers.

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#4 First Indian wicketkeeper to score a century in Australia

Pant has scored two Test match centuries and both of them have earned him a place in the record books. His century in the fourth Test at Sydney is the first by an Indian wicketkeeper in Australia. The previous highest score belonged to Farokh Engineer who scored 89 at Adelaide in 1967.

The 21-year-old is also the only Indian wicketkeeper to score a century in the SENA (South Africa-England-New Zealand-Australia) countries and he already has a century in two of those countries in his first visit.

#5 Highest score by an Indian wicketkeeper in an overseas Test

Pant scored an unbeaten 159 against Australia in Sydney

Pant’s unbeaten 159 against Australia is the third highest by an Indian wicketkeeper ever behind MS Dhoni’s 224 vs Australia in Chennai in 2013 and Budhi Kunderan’s 192 vs England in Chennai in 1964.

Therefore, Pant’s score is the highest score by an Indian wicketkeeper in an overseas Test. The record previously belonged to MS Dhoni who scored 148 vs Pakistan in Faisalabad in 2006.

If Pant was given the time to bat even more, then maybe he may have crossed MS Dhoni’s all-time record of 224 runs.

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#6 Highest score by an Asian wicketkeeper outside the sub-continent

One magnificent century against Australia has given Pant several records.

In addition to becoming the first Indian wicketkeeper to score a century in Australia and setting the highest score by an Indian wicketkeeper in an overseas Test, his score is also the highest by an Asian wicketkeeper outside the sub-continent.

Pant shares this record with Bangladesh’s Mushfiqur Rahim who scored 159 against New Zealand in 2017 at Wellington. However, Rahim was dismissed unlike Pant and he also played 260 balls while Pant faced only 189 balls.