T20 World Cup 2022: It’s always special to play against Pakistan – Rishabh Pant

Indian wicket-keeper batter Rishabh Pant stated that it is always special to play against Pakistan, given the hype around the big match because of the history between the two teams. India has a good record against Pakistan in the World Cup matches but the latter had won in the previous edition of the T20I showpiece convincingly by 10 wickets in the UAE.

India and Pakistan will take on each other at the iconic MCG on Sunday and it should be a thrilling contest between two big teams.

Pant said that there are always so much of emotions involved when they take on Pakistan in a big event like the World Cup. The Delhi player added he had got goosebumps when the national anthem was played in the 2021 T20 World Cup match against Pakistan.

“It’s always special playing against Pakistan because there is a special hype around that match as always,” Pant said. “There are so many emotions involved, not only for us, but the fans and everyone. It’s a different kind of feeling, a different kind of ambiance when you go onto the field and when you take on the field, you see people cheering here and there. It’s a different atmosphere and when we were singing our national anthem, I actually got goosebumps,” Pant said while talking to the ICC.

On the other hand, Pant scored 39 runs from 30 balls against Pakistan in the 2021 T20 World Cup and helped India in posting a score of 151 runs after the side lost two early wickets of Rohit Sharma and KL Rahul. Pant also recalled his knock when he batted with Virat Kohli, who scored a fine fifty.

“I fondly remember that I smacked Hasan Ali for two sixes in the same over. “We were just trying to get the run rate up because we lost early wickets and we staged a partnership – me and Virat. We were increasing the run rate and I smacked him for two sixes with one hand… my special shot,” Pant added.

Meanwhile, Rishabh Pant has a tremendous record in the Australian conditions, especially in the red-ball version of the game. However, Pant hasn’t been able to grab his opportunities in the T20I format in the recent past. Thus, Dinesh Karthik might play ahead of him against Pakistan as the veteran keeper has been adding the finishing touches with great success.