Rishabh Pant stood tall amid the ruins of another India loss in overseas conditions, notching up centuries in both innings at Headingley. Just like most of his masterclasses outside Asia, the team result did not reflect the individual brilliance.Â
India slumped to a five-wicket defeat against England in the first Test of the series. Rishabh Pant’s twin centuries went in vain. The southpaw had scored 134 runs in the first innings and 118 runs in the second. He became the first Indian to score twin centuries in England and second wicket-keeper overall to achieve this feat in Test cricket.
England needed 371 runs to pull off a historic chase at Headingley. The hosts did so comfortably in the final session of the fifth day. Ben Duckett played a 149-run knock, while Joe Root’s fifty officially sealed the game as the hosts opened up the series with a convincing victory.
Rishabh Pant’s Twin Hundreds Wasted in Another Overseas Defeat
The recent loss against England extended a worrying pattern. Rishabh Pant’s tons in SENA (South Africa, England, New Zealand, Australia) countries have never translated into wins for the team.Â
Pant now has six Test centuries in SENA countries, more than any other Indian wicket-keeper, but did not taste victory in any of those matches.
It is a recurring theme now. From The Oval to Cape Town, from Birmingham to Sydney, and now at Leeds, Pant’s centuries have lit up Indian scorecards. But for all his flair and fight, India have failed to finish the job.Â
His 114 at The Oval in 2018, 100* at Cape Town in 2022, and 146 at Edgbaston in 2022 were all in losing causes. Even 159* at Sydney only ended in a draw. The trend continued at Leeds, where his twin centuries went in vain, leaving a bitter aftertaste.
Pant’s twin century feat puts him in elite company. He joins Vijay Hazare, Sunil Gavaskar, and Virat Kohli as the only Indian batters to score two centuries in the same Test and still end up on the losing side.
In an era where Pant is increasingly becoming the face of the Indian Test team, especially because of his contributions overseas, these stats should sting the team.
India Set Unwanted Test Record
To compound the heartbreak, India now hold an unwanted record. At Leeds, they became the first team ever to lose a Test match match despite five of their batters notching up centuries. It is a record no team would want. Before this, the most individual hundreds in a losing cause was four, last seen when Australia went down to England at the MCG in 1928.
Notably, Yashasvi Jaiswal, Shubman Gill and Pant scored centuries in the first innings. KL Rahul hit a ton in the second innings, while Pant yet again reached the three-figure mark.
