The entire cricketing ecosystem was left gasping for breath after India wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant was involved in a horrific car crash in December 2022. The near-fatal accident near Roorkee, Uttarakhand left Pant with a ligament tear in his right knee and two cuts on his forehead. The incident also led to Pant missing more than one year of competitive cricket. If not for Rajat Kumar and Nishu Kumar, Rishabh Pant’s state could have been more worrisome.
In a video posted by 7Cricket, journalist Bharat Sundaresan caught up with Rajat and Nishu, who helped Rishabh Pant survive at the spot of the incident. The duo did not even know who Pant was until that early December morning two years back.
Both of them played a huge role in ensuring his safety. The two men, who work at a factory nearby, dragged Pant out of his car, and it was these two men who took him to the nearby hospital. Pant, as a gesture of gratitude, gifted scooters to both Rajat and Nishu.
Pant’s childhood coach Devender Sharma, was also featured in 7Cricket’s video piece. He talked about the plight of Pant at the hospital.
“The muscles were hanging out of his body. From the back neck to the lower waist you could see his bone. It took five hours to put on the bandage. He was given anaesthesia twice in the process. His body looked like a piece of wood, peeled completely,” Sharma said.
Pant has now made a successful return to competitive cricket, emerging as India’s MVP in the longest format of the game.
Pant’s return to competitive cricket
Rishabh Pant made his return to competitive cricket during the Indian Premier League (IPL) 2024 as he led the Delhi Capitals.
He then staged a comeback in the longest format through the Duleep Trophy. He then was named in the India Test squad for the home series against Bangladesh and New Zealand. He is also a part of the ongoing Border-Gavaskar Trophy against Australia.
On the morning of his accident, Rishabh Pant’s mother had turned to Umesh Kumar, an independent MLA from Uttarakhand, for some help following the horrendous car crash.
Former Team India head coach Ravi Shastri had earlier said that no one would have given Pant a chance in hell, had they seen his injuries way back in December 2022.
“Those two boys were god sent. They saved Rishabh’s life. The decision to take him to Dehradun also saved his life,” Umang Kumar had told Indian Express.
“Honestly if you had seen him you would not have given him a hope in hell to play cricket again. I will never forget it. He was in terrible shape. I went to see him in hospital a month after he was injured. He was battered and bruised, scarred all over,” Shastri was quoted as saying by news.com.au.
“He had a massive operation and had stitches all over the place. From there to simply recover and play cricket was a miracle. To then go on and play in a World Cup-winning team and be part of the Test team is a truly remarkable achievement,” he added.
