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Team India’s young wicketkeeper-batsman Rishabh Pant is known as a maverick on the cricket field. Behind the stumps, he provides plenty of doses of laughter with his ‘commentary’ on the match. His tussle with Australian Test captain Tim Paine during the 2018-19 series has become the stuff of legend.
With the bat, Rishabh Pant can pull off the most audacious-looking strokes with stunning ease - be it reverse-sweeping England legend James Anderson in a Test match or repeating the feat against the pacy Jofra Archer in a T20I.
The left-hander's popularity has increased by leaps and bounds over the last few months following his heroics with the bat Down Under and his subsequent success at home against England.
Rishabh Pant: A maverick on and off the field
While he has won a lot of fans with his on-field performances, Rishabh Pant's off-field antics - mischievous and child-like - have also contributed to his growing admirers.
On that note, let's take a look at the naughty side of Rishabh Pant, mostly from beyond the boundary line.
#1 Rishabh Pant - The weight lifter
While Rishabh Pant and the Indian squad were quarantining in a five-star hotel in Mumbai ahead of the ongoing England tour, the wicketkeeper-batsman pleasantly surprised fans with his lifting prowess.
During a gym session, not only did Rishabh Pant lift the team’s performance analyst Hari Prasad Mohan, he even swivelled around while holding the analyst, all without ever looking like he would drop Mohan.
The cricketer shared the clip on his Instagram story with the caption:
“Hahahahah @hariprasadmohan.”
#2 Screaming competition with Ziva Dhoni
It’s no secret that former India captain MS Dhoni is Rishabh Pant’s role model. Earlier this year, when Delhi Capitals faced Chennai Super Kings in the IPL, the 23-year-old admitted that it was a special feeling to walk out for the toss with his ‘go-to man’.
Rishabh Pant shares an endearing bond with Dhoni’s daughter Ziva as well. The screaming competition between the two captures their innocent chemistry to the hilt.
#3 Doing a tummy check on Rohit Sharma
While Rishabh Pant gives respect to the seniors in the team, he seems to share an affable relationship with most of them.
In fact, the bonding among the current Team India players is great to watch from the outside. In this picture, Rishabh Pant seems to be pointing towards Rohit Sharma’s tummy, hinting that the latter needs to shed some extra fat. The offbeat cricketer shared the image on the latter’s birthday with a cheeky wish. He wrote:
“Happy birthday bhaiya jii @rohitsharma45 ! Hope you have a year filled with runs, except against @delhicapitals.”
#4 Rishabh Pant - the boxing star
As evident by now, Rishabh Pant doesn’t mind having some entertainment during training.
During one such session in the gym, Team India’s trainer Nick Webber found out how naughty the Delhi batsman could get. Webber was having an intense 'boxing' session with the guys.
While he was working out with Yuzvendra Chahal, Rishabh Pant held Webber from behind and a few Indian cricketers, including the wicketkeeper-batsman, started landing punches on the trainer, all in good fun.
The 23-year-old later shared the video with an equally funny caption:
“This what happens when @nick.webby makes you workout too much.”
#5 A smashing birthday for Rishabh Pant
In October last year, Rishabh Pant celebrated his birthday in the UAE with his Delhi Capitals teammates during the IPL.
While a lot of cake was smashed around the birthday boy’s face, the batsman himself joined in the fun. Here, he is seen enjoying a light moment with left-arm spinner Axar Patel.
Rishabh Pant shared the pictures from his birthday celebrations with the caption:
“What's a birthday without a cake smash! Thank you to everyone for all your wishes and making me feel special. Blessed and grateful.”
#6 Day out with nephew
Whenever he gets time from his busy schedule, Rishabh Pant loves spending some precious moments with his near and dear ones.
In this video, the friendly cricketer is enjoying a game of, what seems like, ‘catch me if you can’ with his nephew. Rishabh Pant shared the clip by describing the boy as one of the ‘coolest’.
#7 The swinging star
As a batsman, Rishabh Pant loves swinging the bat around. Off the field as well, he seems to enjoy the swinging game. In this video, the young cricketer shared an important message in a playful mood. He wrote:
“Never lose the little kid inside you. The idea is to die young as late as possible.”
#8 Wacky to the T
In a way, Rishabh Pant is a cartoon character of the Indian cricket team. He does laughable stuff behind the stumps - from singing spider-man to asking the batsmen hilarious questions.
The Delhi Capitals (DC) player loves being wacky off the field as well. Posing with a ‘cartoon’ T-shirt some months back, he asked fans a curious question:
“How many of you have watched this cartoon on my T-shirt?
#9 When Rishabh Pant took the Front Hand Spring Challenge
During IPL 2020, Rishabh Pant seemed to have put on a lot of weight, and it clearly affected his cricket.
However, he worked hard to get back into shape, so much so that a few months back, he was at complete ease taking the Front Hand Spring Challenge. Sharing the fun video on social media, Rishabh Pant told fans:
“Life's a lot more interesting when you take out time for fun! Let's throw this out there, and see how many you guys can do? If you can already do this, shoot a video. If you can't, try your best. Let's try and make the #FrontHandSpringChallenge a thing, and I'll share the best submissions on my stories.”
#10 Let the music play
When you are travelling with Rishabh Pant, you rarely get bored. In this clip, the wicketkeeper-batsman is seen having a gala time with teammates, grooving to a peppy song.
Team India opener Mayank Agarwal is giving him good company. Rishabh Pant shared the playful video with the caption:
“This is what you do when you have a long travel day."
Knowing Rishabh Pant’s maverick ways, there are many more enjoyable moments in store for his fans, both on and off the field.
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