"Officially it's Rishabh Pant era in Indian cricket"- Fans react as wicketkeeper-batter jumps to 5th spot in ICC Test rankings

Team India's wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant attained the highest spot among Indian cricketers in the latest ICC Ranking for Test batters, which was released on Wednesday.

Pant’s recent form with two centuries and three half-centuries in his past six Test innings propelled him to fifth position, moving up six spots.

The southpaw was also India's best batter in the recently concluded Test against England at Edgbaston. Pant played a whirlwind knock of 146 off 111 balls to put India on top. He backed it up with a half-century in the second innings.

However, England put on a scintillating show with the bat to chase down a record target of 378 runs in the final innings. They won the game with seven wickets to spare courtesy of unbeaten centuries from Joe Root and Jonny Bairstow.

Meanwhile, Indian cricket fans were extremely delighted to see the youngster taking rapid strides in international cricket. They congratulated Pant for his rapid success and also longed for him to be the No.1 Test batter in the world soon.

Here are some of the reactions:

One tweet claiming that it is now 'officially it's Rishabh Pant era in Indian cricket', seemed to best sum up the situation.

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"He keeps increasing everyone's heart rates time and again" - Rahul Dravid on Rishabh Pant

Team India head coach Rahul Dravid reserved high praise for Rishabh Pant following his superlative performance in the Birmingham Test. Dravid also asserted that the management backs Pant's aggressive brand of cricket.

Addressing reporters at the end of the fifth Test, the former Indian captain said:

“He is doing really well in Test cricket. He keeps increasing everyone's heart rates time and again with some of his shots but we are now used to do that."

He added:

“We accept that he may play some shots at time that we think he maybe shouldn't play. I think we need to accept that a little because the way he plays, he can turn a Test around and he did that in this match and in South Africa. We can also see that he is thoughtful and does not take a wild swing at every ball."

Dravid further noted:

"He waits for the ball and plays on his strengths. He backs himself when he sees the right bowler and that has been our message to him."

The Delhi Capitals captain will next be seen in action during the three-match T20I series against England, which gets underway on July 7 (Thursday) in Southampton. It will be followed by three one-day internationals against England.