NEW DELHI: Rishabh Pant could not have asked for a better 29th birthday present. On a day when he missed the action because of fever, the Rest of India captain watched his teammates complete a stunning comeback against Jammu and Kashmir to reclaim the Irani Cup before joining the celebrations with the trophy and cake.Rest of India, after conceding a 41-run first-innings lead to the Ranji Trophy champions, bowled out J&K for just 111 in their chase of 279 on Sunday to seal a commanding 167-run victory at the Sher-i-Kashmir Stadium.Pant, who made 10 and eight in the match, did not take the field on the fourth day, with Sarfaraz Khan taking over as on-field captain. But his leadership was evident in the way Rest of India responded after falling behind early.
‘We just kept on fighting’
Addressing his teammates after the victory, Pant said the squad had been driven by the desire to restore pride after going without the Irani Cup for two years.“Guys, great effort. In the last 5-7 days, we were discussing that let’s play for the pride and let’s play for our monogram. No matter what happens, especially in the first innings, they did a good batting effort and they took the first innings lead,” Pant said in a video posted by BCCI Domestic.“But, in the dressing room, whatever they do, we need to focus on ourselves. Obviously, most of the time, the game went in their favour.”The captain praised his teammates for refusing to let the match slip away.“One thing for sure, our Rest of India team, we didn’t let it go. We just kept on fighting with every ounce of intensity we had. One day, one over, one ball at a time and, everyone contributed in their own way,” he said.“From last two years, we were not winning. But, we made sure that when we leave this ground, we put our name on the trophy as winners.”
‘Thanks for the gift’
The celebrations became even more special with Pant’s birthday falling on the day of the triumph.In a video shared by BCCI Domestic, his teammates and coaches gathered around the wicketkeeper-batter and sang ‘Happy Birthday’ in chorus. Ground staff members also offered their blessings and wishes before Pant cut the cake and posed with the trophy alongside his teammates.“Thanks for the gift,” a smiling Pant said as the dressing-room celebrations continued.The captain also explained how a tactical adjustment in bowling helped turn the contest around.“Mostly the plan was to bowl fuller in the first innings. That was the conversation we had with the bowlers that we were like, we would back up the length,” Pant said at the post-match presentation.“That was something we wanted to correct in the second innings because we knew our bowlers were really good, but the problem was the first innings we bowled too much back of the length, and we corrected that and bowled fuller and fuller in the second innings.”Mukesh Kumar led the demolition with 6-33 as J&K collapsed after lunch.Pant also reserved special praise for young batter Ravichandran Smaran, who scored 68 in the first innings before producing a match-winning 135 in the second.“Today all the pieces fell in place, but at the same time, you know, like you mentioned, Smaran, the way he played in both innings, I think it was outstanding innings, especially we were under pressure, especially in the second innings the way he played, it was outstanding,” Pant said.