Rishabh Pant Sets Record with T20-Style Batting in Sydney Test
The fifth Test match between India and Australia at Sydney, part of the Border-Gavaskar Trophy, has entered an intriguing phase. On the second day, India bowled out Australia for 181 runs in their first innings. However, India’s second innings started poorly, with the team struggling at 141/6 by the end of the day’s play.
India’s top-order batsmen, including Yashasvi Jaiswal (22), KL Rahul (13), Shubman Gill (13), Virat Kohli (6), and Nitesh Kumar Reddy (4), were dismissed for low scores. Ravindra Jadeja and Washington Sundar were unbeaten at 8 and 6 runs, respectively, at stumps.
Amid this collapse, Rishabh Pant’s aggressive batting stood out. Batting at number five, Pant counter-attacked the Australian bowlers with an aggressive, T20-style approach, scoring a brisk half-century off just 29 balls. He smashed six fours and four sixes, finishing his innings with 61 runs off 33 balls at an impressive strike rate of 184.85. Pant’s assault included consecutive sixes off Mitchell Starc in the 23rd over and aggressive shots against other bowlers before he was caught by Alex Carey off Scott Boland’s bowling.
With this knock, Rishabh Pant became the second-fastest Indian player to score a half-century in Test cricket in terms of balls faced. Remarkably, he also holds the record for the fastest fifty by an Indian in Tests, achieved off 28 balls against Sri Lanka in 2022.
The list of fastest half-centuries in Test cricket by Indian players is as follows:
Rishabh Pant – 28 balls (vs Sri Lanka, 2022)
Rishabh Pant – 29 balls (vs Australia, Sydney, 2025)
Kapil Dev – 30 balls (vs Pakistan, 1982)
Shardul Thakur – 31 balls (vs England, 2021)
Yashasvi Jaiswal – 31 balls (vs Bangladesh, 2024)
Rishabh Pant’s ability to score quickly in Tests has made him a crucial player for India in high-pressure situations. His latest knock has further enhanced his reputation as a game-changing batsman capable of altering the course of a match in a short span of time.