Sunil Gavaskar forced to take back his 'stupid-stupid-stupid' remark after Rishabh Pant hits measured ton

Former India captain Sunil Gavaskar had once called Rishabh Pant’s shot “stupid, stupid, stupid” during a Test match against Australia. But after watching Pant score a measured century against England in the 1st Test match at Headingley, Gavaskar has changed his opinion.

During the first Test between India and England, Pant played a very mature knock. He took his time early on and slowly built his innings. Once he was set, he began attacking the bowlers with big shots and reached his 100 in style with a six, helping India get to a strong total.

From ‘stupid-stupid-stupid’ to ‘superb-superb-superb’

Gavaskar, who was doing commentary on Sony Sports Network, praised Pant’s batting in England. He said that Pant looked very comfortable even while defending against fast bowlers. This is very different from what happened during the Melbourne Test in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy.

“It seems like that’s how he plays. When he comes in to bat, on the second or third ball, he often uses his feet and hits a boundary. It makes him feel free and then allows him to play the way he wants. Over here, he’s been measured in his approach—giving himself time out in the middle. But once he’s in and the bowlers start to tire, that’s when he begins to step down the pitch and really attack, hitting big shots, sixes, and boundaries,” Gavaskar said.

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“Because he gives himself that time early on, it becomes easier for him to play those aggressive strokes later. When he defends, he seems to have so much time against the pace bowlers—it almost looks like he’s taking the mickey out of them, saying, “Look, I’ve got all the time in the world; I don’t need to play a big shot, I’m just middling the ball. He’s got enormous talent. I’ve seen him score hundreds in South Africa and Australia, and they’ve been absolutely unbelievable. There’s such a great blend of defence and attack—starting with solid defence and then shifting to attack,” he added.

Another 𝐒 word from Sunny G...𝐒𝐔𝐏𝐄𝐑𝐁!🫡#SonySportsNetwork #GroundTumharaJeetHamari #ENGvIND #NayaIndia #DhaakadIndia #TeamIndia pic.twitter.com/w1SF4t7KRz

— Sony Sports Network (@SonySportsNetwk) June 21, 2025

In the match in Australia, Pant had batted patiently for 30 runs but then played a poor shot against part-time bowler Travis Head and got out. India were already under pressure, and Pant’s wicket triggered a collapse. Gavaskar was very angry at the time and called it a “stupid shot,” saying Pant had let the team down.

“Stupid, stupid, stupid! You have two fielders there, you still go for that shot. You have missed the previous shot and look where you have been caught. You have been caught at deep third man. That is throwing away your wicket. Not in the situation that India was. You have to understand the situation as well. You cannot say that that’s your natural game. I’m sorry that is not your natural game. That is a stupid shot that is letting your team down badly,” Sunil Gavaskar had said.