IND vs WI | Sometimes it’s important for crowd to support players, feels Rishabh Pant

International cricket, or at least limited-overs cricket, has not been easy for young Rishabh Pant who, after replacing MS Dhoni as the country’s first-choice wicket-keeper post the World Cup, has had a horrid time on the field - be it with bat or behind the stumps. The Delhite was not able to translate his potential into runs and this, in turn, left a few fans frustrated and disappointed and they expressed the same by chanting Dhoni’s name every time Pant made a mistake.

With Chennai being Dhoni’s den in the IPL, the worst was expected ahead of the first ODI at Chepauk, but to everyone’s pleasant surprise, the crowd instead cheered for Pant in unison. Coincidentally or not, the young wicket-keeper batsman responded by scoring his first half-century in ODI cricket and alongside Shreyas Iyer, helped India post a competitive first-innings total of 287. 

Now, post his much-needed startling knock, Pant shed light on the importance of crowd support and revealed that he’s been working hard on trying to improve himself on a daily basis. The youngster also stressed on the importance of adapting to the situation in international cricket.

"Sometimes it's important when the crowd supports you. From an individual point of view, I was trying to improve myself every day but I wasn't getting there. I am not saying I got there, but I try to improve," Pant said in the post-match press conference, reported Times of India.

"I've realised after playing a fair bit at the international level that unlike at amateur levels of cricket, there isn't anything like a natural game. At the international level, you have to play according to the situation or what the team demands," he added.

In the absence of both Jasprit Bumrah and Bhuvneshwar Kumar, the Indian bowling line-up received a pasting from the Windies in the first ODI, courtesy centuries from Shimron Hetmyer and Shai Hope. But despite the battering, Pant believes that these defeats are nothing but just learning curves for the bowlers and feels that with time, as they play more and learn, the bowlers will get a grip on international cricket. 

"Bumrah is a top bowler. Everyone knows that. He's out because of an injury. The other bowlers who are playing here aren't doing badly. As youngsters, these guys are learning. Bumrah has now become an experienced bowler. He has learnt quite a bit having played so much of international cricket. These players will also learn as they go along,” Pant opined.

“If I'm practising, I think about cricket. If I'm off the field, I'm not thinking about it too much. I talked to the team management and they told me, 'just calm yourself, see what you can do around to improve your game, improve your fitness, just try to improve yourself in every way'."