“He is hungry” - Sanjay Manjrekar feels Rishabh Pant will carry his form to second Test vs England

Former Indian cricketer and commentator Sanjay Manjrekar feels Rishabh Pant, the keeper-batter, will continue his good form in the second Test against England, scheduled to start on Wednesday, July 2, at Edgbaston in Birmingham.

Notably, Pant emerged as the first Indian batter to hit twin centuries in England. Furthermore, he also became the second keeper-batter after Andy Flower to score twin centuries in a Test in England.

"I think he (Rishabh Pant) will (carry his form to the second game) because it seems like he enjoys batting in Test cricket. Any batter who gets two hundreds in a Test match, it takes a lot out of you mentally, not so much physically, getting a hundred in the first innings, and 48 hours later, you have the same kind of reserve to get another hundred. So that is a hallmark of an exceptional player," Manjrekar told Star Sports.

Furthermore, the former Indian batter also talked highly about the Indian opening batter KL Rahul, who shouldn’t be a one-hundred wonder, but Indian cricket needs him badly in the ongoing five-match Test series.

"Rishabh Pant enjoys Test matches. He has not gotten enough runs. So he is hungry. I see Pant carrying his form, but there is another senior batter in the team who now has no choice but to carry his form right through the series. Indian cricket needs him badly, and KL Rahul cannot be a one-hundred wonder or a one-Test-match performer," he added.

Interestingly, the pace spearhead Jasprit Bumrah might miss out on the second Test as part of managing his workload. Also, England, led by Ben Stokes, is likely to give Jofra Archer a spot in the playing XI after four years in red-ball cricket.

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