NEW DELHI: Following Rishabh Pant’s sensational twin centuries within the ongoing Leeds Test at Headingley, former cricketer Sanjay Manjrekar believes the India vice-captain could surpass Rahul Dravid’s document for many centuries by an Indian in England.Pant’s exceptional hundred within the second innings on Day 4 of the opening Test in opposition to England shattered a number of information. With a mix of flamboyance and self-discipline, the wicketkeeper-batter carved a memorable knock that added to his rising legacy in purple-ball cricket.Speaking on Match Centre Live after the conclusion of Day 4, JioCinema skilled Sanjay Manjrekar heaped reward on Pant’s uncommon achievement.“When you look at all of Rishabh Pant’s achievements, the first instinct is to think of him purely as a batter — and understandably so. When you’re talking about batting exploits in England, scoring twin hundreds, the names he’s being compared with are legends like Dilip Vengsarkar, Rahul Dravid, Sachin Tendulkar, and Sunil Gavaskar. But here’s the remarkable part — he’s also a wicketkeeper. That’s what makes it almost unbelievable,” Manjrekar stated.He additional underlined the importance of Pant’s twin position within the group.“I know someone like Kumar Sangakkara had a phenomenal batting record, but he wasn’t quite the keeper that Rishabh Pant is. Pant is India’s first and last choice as a wicketkeeper in this Test side — and that says a lot,” he added.Manjrekar additionally pointed to the statistical risk of Pant eclipsing Dravid’s tally of six Test centuries in England, with 4 matches nonetheless to be performed within the ongoing collection.“If you look at the numbers — most hundreds by Indians in Tests in England — Rahul Dravid leads with six. And suddenly, you have Pant’s name in that same elite bracket. There’s a nice little twist — there are two Rahul’s in this story. You’ve got KL Rahul, and you’ve got Rishabh Pant. Who knows, by the time this series is done, Pant could match or even surpass Rahul Dravid. There are still four Tests to go in this series — that’s potentially eight innings for Pant. He’s already started in near-perfect fashion,” he concluded.Most Test centuries in England (by Indian batters):
| Player | Matches | Runs | Centuries |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rahul Dravid | 6 | 846 | 6 |
| Sachin Tendulkar | 4 | 611 | 4 |
| Rishabh Pant | 3 | 512 | 4 |
| Dilip Vengsarkar | 4 | 488 | 4 |
| KL Rahul | 3 | 415 | 3 |
| Sourav Ganguly | 3 | 395 | 3 |
| Sunil Gavaskar | 2 | 322 | 2 |
| Mohammad Azharuddin | 2 | 300 | 2 |
| Ravi Shastri | 2 | 287 | 2 |
| Virat Kohli | 2 | 252 | 2 |
Pant had earlier scored 134 within the first innings and adopted it up with a commanding 118 within the second, partnering with KL Rahul in a 195-run stand that positioned India firmly in management. His method was notably adaptive — switching from his pure aggression to a extra measured model because the scenario demanded. From 96, he cautiously moved to 99 earlier than reaching his second hundred with a single off Shoaib Bashir, changing into the primary Indian batter to attain a century in every innings of a Test in England.
With this feat, Pant joined India’s unique twin-century membership, alongside Vijay Hazare, Sunil Gavaskar (3 occasions), Rahul Dravid (twice), Virat Kohli, Ajinkya Rahane, and Rohit Sharma.The 27-yr-outdated additionally turned solely the second designated wicketkeeper-batter to attain a whole bunch in each innings of a Test — after Andy Flower, who achieved the feat in Harare in opposition to South Africa in 2001 with scores of 142 and 199*.Pant’s identify now options amongst legendary visiting batters who’ve recorded 5 consecutive 50-plus scores in England — alongside Don Bradman, Hansie Cronje, Shivnarine Chanderpaul, Kumar Sangakkara, and Daryl Mitchell. Only Steven Smith (7) has extra.His match combination of 252 runs (134 & 118) is the very best ever by a delegated wicketkeeper in a Test in England, surpassing Alec Stewart’s 204 (40 & 164) in opposition to South Africa at Old Trafford in 1998.Pant additionally equaled the document for many sixes in a Test innings in England, ending with 9, alongside Andrew Flintoff (2005 Ashes, Edgbaston) and Ben Stokes (2023 Ashes, Lord’s).Across 10 Tests and 19 innings in England, Pant has now amassed 808 runs at a median of 42.52, with 4 centuries, two fifties, and a strike charge of 69.89 — underlining his dominance and evolving legacy in difficult abroad situations.
