Pranav Pant keen to make most of maiden India U-19 call-up

Pranav Pant.
| Photo Credit: Special Arrangement

He is a left-hand batter. He is from Delhi. His surname is Pant.

That’s perhaps reason enough to get excited about Pranav Pant, an all-rounder who recently earned his maiden India U-19 call-up for the U-19 Asia Cup in the United Arab Emirates beginning on November 29. Pranav, a top-order batter who also bowls left-arm medium-pace, has been rewarded for his impressive displays in Delhi’s U-19 set-up over the past year.

“This India U-19 call up gives me extra motivation. I have been wanting to play for India U-19 for the last couple of years. Now that I have got a chance, I hope to do well,” Pranav told The Hindu over phone on Tuesday night.

Not surprisingly given the parallels with Rishabh Pant, Pranav, who turned 18 on Wednesday, looks up to the star wicketkeeper-batter for his attacking strokeplay. Rishabh, too, was once a member of the Indian U-19 team before transitioning to the senior level and turning himself into an integral member of the Test team in particular.

“I used to copy a bit from everyone. But from the time I saw Rishabh bhaiya, I liked his batting style a lot,” Pranav, who is from the bylanes of west Delhi, said. “In terms of mindset and work ethics, I look up to Virat Kohli. Bowling-wise, I like Dale Steyn a lot.

“I first saw Rishabh bhaiya from up close at the National Cricket Academy (NCA) around three years ago. Then when I moved from U-16 to U-19, I had again gone to NCA for a camp. He was recovering from his accident there. He used to play table tennis with us and be really nice to all of us.”

The teenager’s breakout performance at the U-19 level came in the Cooch Behar Trophy last year when he struck 292 for Delhi against Himachal Pradesh.

“It is my best knock so far. It was my first double hundred in state cricket,” he said. “Before that, I had made three fifties but no hundreds. It was the last game of the season for us and I was promoted to open. So, I cashed in and was called up to the NCA as well after that.”