Rishabh Pant Becomes The First Indian Wicketkeeper To Score Twin Centuries In One Test
Rishabh Pant wrote his name in history books with twin centuries in the Leeds Test against England.
Kevin Varchand 
Headingly (England) June 23: Rishabh Pant scripted history by becoming the first Indian player to score a century in both innings of a Test match. The wicketkeeper batter took on the English bowlers on Day 4 with his attacking batting approach and put India in a formidable position, as KL Rahul also scored a fine century as India stretched their lead past 250.
The left-handed batter, who scored 134 in the first innings, reached the triple-figure mark in 130 balls on Monday to stamp his authority over the English bowlers. He smashed 13 fours and 2 sixes en route to his century. The Indian dressing stood up to applaud him
Pant, who recently became the new vice-captain of Team India, showed maturity in the first half of his innings. After a couple of flashy shots, he learnt from his mistakes and became watchful during the tough period before the Lunch break. However, in the second session, he came up with an attacking plan to take on the English bowlers and put them under pressure.
He became the first Indian to score a century in both innings of a Test match in England. Meanwhile, he also etched his name in history to become the second wicketkeeper batter to score twin centuries in a Test match after Andy Flower, who did it against South Africa in 2001.
He joined an exclusive group as the seventh Indian to reach the milestone, with legends like Sunil Gavaskar achieving it on three occasions and Rahul Dravid doing it twice before him.
The 27-year-old drew loud cheers from the Leeds crowd as they celebrated his milestone with enthusiasm but they missed his trademark somersault celebration this time.
Amid his explosive innings, Pant showed a rare moment of frustration when he failed to execute a scoop shot, narrowly avoiding a reckless dismissal. Following the close call, he was visibly seen engaging in self-talk, urging himself to stay composed and avoid taking unnecessary risks. His batting partner, KL Rahul was also seen helping him with his insights as also told him to be watchful of the balls before playing shots.
After a breathtaking start to the second session, Pant became watchful once again when he was at 98 and took his time to reach the milestone. He never looked nervous, but was all relaxed to get to the mark.
