Rishabh Pant: I was feeling the heat each and every day before Aus success

Rishabh Pant

Rishabh Pant has navigated a wave of criticism and ridicule with his electrifying strokes in Australia but not long ago, the wicketkeeper was "feeling the heat each and every day" even after cutting himself off from the outside world. Up against one of the best bowling attacks of all time, Pant came into his own during the Test matches in Sydney and Brisbane, where he successfully powered India to an epic win days after failing to do so by a whisker in the third and penultimate match.

But the time prior to those two knocks of 97 and 89 not out, the first one coming after he had taken two painkilling injections and sedatives, wasn't so kind on the player who has been carrying huge expectations since bursting on to the scene. "I was feeling the heat each and every day, it's part and parcel of the game. But as an individual, you need to believe in yourself," Pant, a key player in the team's 2-1 series triumph, told India Today.

"If you're moving forward then you're improving, this is what I've learnt during the tough phase. Focus so much on your game that you don't notice anything else. It's difficult also to block the outside noise because of social media but I have segregated myself from it.

"When you're doing well people will write good but when you're not, they will criticize you. So if you don't focus on the criticism and instead focus on your cricket then that's much better I guess," he added. The 23-year-old's hard work paid dividends as he finished the four-match Test series as the third-highest scorer with 274 runs from three matches.

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