After warming the benches for a long time, Rishabh Pant finally took the field during the 3-day practice match against New Zealand XI and didnโ€™t fail to make a mark. In the third innings of the match, the dynamic southpaw unleashed his carnage and rained fours and sixes all over the Seddon Park in Hamilton. The likes of Scott Kuggeleijn and Ish Sodhi couldnโ€™t restrict the batsman and as a result, Pant ended up scoring a 65-ball 70 in the tied affair. Well, he must have been pleased with his performances and even Twitterati couldnโ€™t keep calm after watching Pantโ€™s blitz and hailed him from head to toe.ย Mayank Agarwal Chooses a Unique Method for Preparing for India vs New Zealand Test Series 2020 (Watch Video).

Before putting on the tremendous batting display, Pant was clinical behind the stumps too. His glovework looked improved as he took three catches in the first innings. Well, the 22-year old has certainly made his case stronger for a place in the playing XI and it will be interesting to see whether he will don the gloves ahead of Wriddhiman Saha in the first Test or not. Meanwhile, letโ€™s look at how netizens reacted on Pantโ€™s cameo.

Brilliant Performance!!

Fans Bat For Pant!!

More Praises!!

Well Done!!

What A Knock!!

Speaking of the practice day game, apart from Pant, Mayank Agarwal and Hanuma Vihari are the other batsmen who came good with the bat. In the bowling department, Jasprit Bumrah, Umesh Yadav and Mohammed Shami looked at their vintage best and will be eyeing to rattle the Kiwi top-order in the Test series too. The first of the two-match Test series will be played at Basin Reserve in Wellington and will get underway on February 21.

(The above story first appeared on LatestLY on Feb 16, 2020 09:33 AM IST. For more news and updates on politics, world, sports, entertainment and lifestyle, log on to our website latestly.com).