Delhi Capitals' captain Rishabh Pant walked out to a standing ovation as he strode out to bat after a staggering 672 days in Match 2 of IPL 2024 against the Punjab Kings in Mullanpur Stadium. The IPL's official social media handles posted a video of Pant walking out to bat as the crowd clapped for him.
The keeper-batter suffered a life-threatening car accident in December 2022 while driving from Delhi to Dehradun. The youngster went multiple surgeries and missed significant sporting events like IPL 2023, World Test Championship final, and the 2023 World Cup in India. In an interview before IPL 2023, Pant also revealed the possibility of amputation at some stage after his accident.
During an interview with The Times of India, Pant said:
"When my accident happened I felt something spiritual saved me. With the kind of accident I had, I only got my knee injured, but I can't even imagine how much worse it could have been. Doctors even spoke to me about amputation."
Harshal Patel's short-pitched delivery gets the better of Rishabh Pant:
Harshal Patel, who fetched ₹11.75 crore from the Punjab Kings and got David Warner, made the breakthrough with a short-pitched delivery to Pant. Pant, who got off to a promising start, could only spoon it to Jonny Bairstow at backward point.
It was the Punjab Kings captain Shikhar Dhawan, who sent the Capitals into bat after winning the toss. The Kings have opted for Jonny Bairstow, Sam Curran, Liam Livingstone, and Kagiso Rabada as their overseas stars, while Kings have gone with Warner, Mitchell Marsh, Shai Hope, and Tristan Stubbs.
