Rishabh Pant was in his elements on day two (Saturday, November 2) of the ongoing third Test between India and New Zealand as he added another feather to his illustrious cap. Pant shattered Yashasvi Jaiswal's India record to register the fastest Test fifty against New Zealand.
Pant took just 36 balls to reach his fifty and eased past Jaiswal who had taken 42 deliveries during the second innings of the Pune Test to set up the India record for the fastest Test fifty against the Kiwis. Pant's flamboyant knock allowed India to push the tourists on the back foot immediately.
The southpaw took his time initially and then launched an onslaught on the Kiwi bowlers. He struck eight fours and two sixes during his innings before falling prey to leg-spinner Ish Sodhi. Sodhi trapped Pant in front of his stumps but not before the carnage he inflicted in humid conditions in Mumbai.
Pant stitched a 96-run stand for the fifth wicket alongside Shubman Gill to rescue India from a tricky position. This is Rishabh's second fifty-plus score in the ongoing series. He had scored 99 in the second innings of the first Test in Bengaluru.
India's Playing XI for the 3rd Test in Mumbai:
Yashasvi Jaiswal, Rohit Sharma (c), Shubman Gill, Virat Kohli, Rishabh Pant (wk), Sarfaraz Khan, Ravindra Jadeja, Washington Sundar, Ravichandran Ashwin, Akash Deep, Mohammed Siraj
Bench:
Axar Patel, Dhruv Jurel, Kuldeep Yadav, KL Rahul, Jasprit Bumrah
Support Staff:
Gautam Gambhir, Abhishek Nayar, Ryan ten Doeschate, T Dilip, Morne Morkel
New Zealand's Playing XI for the 3rd Test in Mumbai:
Tom Latham (c), Devon Conway, Will Young, Rachin Ravindra, Daryl Mitchell, Tom Blundell (wk), Glenn Phillips, Ish Sodhi, Matt Henry, Ajaz Patel, William ORourke
Bench:
Jacob Duffy, Mark Chapman, Tim Southee, Mitchell Santner
Support Staff:
Gary Stead, Luke Ronchi, Shane Jurgensen
