In the two previous matches that young Rishabh Pant played for Delhi Daredevils, he faced a total of 21 balls. Asked to open the innings in his third game against Gujarat Lions, Pant pounced on the opportunity, becoming the second youngest player to score a half-century in the IPL. Pant justified his promotion in an imposing manner. Chasing 150, he took the bowling attack apart and reached his maiden T20 fifty in only 25 balls.

The Powerplay overs were proving to be a headache for the Daredevils with the previous best just being a lowly 24. Pant and Quinton de Kock (46 off 45) added 115 for the first wicket, making a promising start in their first outing together.

The 18-year-old showed no signs of nervousness and instead forced his senior partner to play a supporting role. Pant slammed three boundaries – first to midwicket, second to cover and the third to point – in just the second over bowled by Dhawal Kulkarni, who has been economical this season. The big-hitting Pant then hit two boundaries and a six off Suresh Raina’s over, getting to his half-century inside 10 overs.

Realizing that Pant was striking the ball extremely well, de Kock was more than happy to take a backseat and let the teenager take charge. The dominance continued until Pant got out in the 14th over. Perhaps, the only time the teenager slowed down was during a chat with IPLT20.COM, when he asked Kock to take over. “We were not doing too well at the top. To see Pant batting like that and dominating was quite nice. He took a lot of pressure off me and controlled the game. Normally, I feel I need to be the one who dominates the game. (But) he took over my role. I had to be the anchor and change my role. Hopefully, he keeps doing that,” said de Kock after the match.

Pant credited his South African partner for making his job easy. “He has been supporting me. He gave me the right knowledge on how to take on the bowlers. I enjoyed batting with him.” Asked if there was a specific message from de Kock, Pant said, “He told me that if you get the ball, hit it. There is no need to do anything extra (different).”

If the youngster batted fearlessly, it was thanks to captain Zaheer Khan and Delhi Daredevils’ support staff. “The decision (to open) was our management’s and the captain’s. They showed a lot of faith and gave confidence.”

While the first hurdle has been cleared, more challenges await the Delhi youngster. Pant said having Rahul Dravid as the team’s mentor has been a big plus for him and others in the side. “He (Dravid) has been telling me most of the things. There is a difference between U19 and senior-level cricket. He told me to learn as much as I can from Quiny (de Kock) and JP bhai (Duminy). I am a youngster. They have played a lot of international cricket, so they will teach me, and as much as I can take from them, it will be good for me.”

With the IPL providing a perfect platform to share knowledge and pass on experience, de Kock said he would nurture young talent. “There is not much advice for Pant. He is too talented to give him advice. He will learn along the way, like I did. Along the way, I will guide him wherever I can. I will do what I can to see him improve. Hopefully, one day we’ll see him play in a Proteas versus India game.”

With most of the Daredevils’ squad comprising bright youngsters, de Kock said he was enjoying his time with the team. “It is quite nice. We've got a great team energy. There is lots of enthusiasm, especially on the field. We are always busy. We always support each other. It is nice to be surrounded by youngsters for once.”

It is not often that two wicketkeepers play in the XI and both bat left-hand and open the innings. Apart from Pant and de Kock, the Daredevils in fact, had two other wicketkeepers in their XI, with Sanju Samson coming in at No.3 and Englishman Sam Billings down the order. Talking about the wicketkeepers’ club, de Kock, who put on the gloves joked, “We gel well. We complement each other. Pant likes me in the field. He felt let the old man keep wickets.”