"India's greatest ever Test batter-keeper"- Former India batter makes massive statement about Rishabh Pant on Day 2 of ENG vs IND 2025 1st Test

Former India batter Sanjay Manjrekar referred to Rishabh Pant as India's greatest wicket-keeper batter in Test cricket after his innings of 134 against England at Leeds on Saturday, June 21. The 59-year-old said that he was worried when the southpaw was in his 90s, considering he had shown a tendency to fall at that stage of his innings in his career.

Manjrekar described the 27-year-old as "a breath of fresh air" as he surpassed MS Dhoni's tally of six Test hundreds on Saturday.

"By far, India's greatest ever Test batter-keeper. I was worried when he was in the 90s that he might end up getting his 8th 90 of his career. It is just unbelievable that he has so many 90s! But he's a breath of fresh air," Manjrekar told JioStar (via The Times of India).

The former India batter also praised the crowd at Headingley for appreciating Pant's innings after he fell lbw to Josh Tongue for 134. The southpaw also found praise from former India captain Sunil Gavaskar in the commentary box, who described his innings as "Superb! Superb! Superb!"

"When he got out and raised his bat, there were a lot of English supporters who stood up and applauded that innings. That's what we love about England -- these guys come to watch good cricket. They want their team to win, but when they see excellence from the opposition, you can see true appreciation for it," Manjrekar said.

Rishabh Pant gets to his seventh Test hundred as India finish on 471 in 1st innings

Rishabh Pant walked out to bat at number five on Friday, June 20, and brought his entire repertoire of strokes that was a combination of orthodoxy and audacious.

He got to his hundred with a one-handed six off Shoaib Bashir and backed that shot with a somersault celebration, much to the delight of the crowd. At the time of writing, England were 96/1 in 20 overs in reply to India's 471.

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Edited by Sankalp Srivastava