Tendulkar Praises “Calm and Flair” as Ganguly Erupts After Pant & Rahul Ton Feats

Tendulkar Praises “Calm & Flair”: Sachin Tendulkar took to social media to celebrate KL Rahul and Rishabh Pant’s hundreds on day four of the first Test of their five-match series between India and England at Headingley in Leeds on Monday.

KL and Pant's classy knocks provided India a lead of over 300 runs at the end of the second session of day four in the Leeds Test.

Pant smashed a century for the second time in the match, scoring 118 in the second innings. It was his eighth career Test ton, four of which came in England. He became the ninth visiting batter to score centuries in both innings of a Test match in England, the second wicketkeeper-batter after Zimbabwe's Andy Flower in 2001, and the first from India.

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Rahul, on the other hand, scored 137 runs - his third century in England, as he pipped Rahul Dravid to be the Asian opener with the most triple-figure scores in England. The pair stitched a 195-run stand that turned the match India's way.

The dual centuries left legends Sachin Tendulkar and Sourav Ganguly elated as they praised the two batters. The former India captain even predicted that the match could have a winner if there is no rain on the final day in Leeds.

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“KL Rahul’s calm. Rishabh Pant‘s flair. Two special knocks. Two proud moments." Sachin Tendulkar posted on X, formerly Twitter.

Rahul achieved his ninth Test century, and Pant, who had also scored a century in the first innings, reached his eighth. The pair put together a crucial 195-run partnership for the fourth wicket, forming the backbone of India’s strong response after Gill’s departure.

Ex-Indian all-rounder Irfan Pathan also called KL India's "Sankatmochan" ("remover of obstacles") and also hailed Pant's aggressive knock, which was an innings of two halves, with the journey till the half-century being marked by caution.

In another tweet he posted, "Back-to-back s from Rishabh Pant! One innings, two halves. Two characters, one man -- that's Rishabh Pant for you. Brilliant stuff."

England remained unscathed at the close of Day 4, with the openers knocking off 21 runs off the target and surviving three overs from star pace bowler Jasprit Bumrah. They need 350 more at less than four runs per over in the last three sessions on Tuesday, although some rain is forecast. But the odds are certainly in favour of India, even as the ‘Bazball’ era is confident of chasing down the target. If it does, it will set a record for England at Headingley.

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