Rishabh Pant is quite well known for his work ethic, as the wicketkeeper batsman made a miraculous comeback after a life-threatening accident in 2022.
Since then, the southpaw hasn't left any stone unturned in getting back to his best, the rewards of which he is reaping now. However, things were not as smooth as they seemed.
Follow The Sporting News India on WhatsApp
Pant made a comeback to the Indian team for the T20 World Cup in 2024 but was largely unsuccessful in making a significant impact.
He had a sub-par outing in the format that he loves the most, as India lost to Australia in the Border-Gavaskar Trophy (BGT) 2024/25 by a margin of 1-3.
Things went from bad to worse as he was dropped from the starting lineup in the ODIs and had to see India lifting the Champions Trophy (CT) from the bench for the entirety of the tournament.
However, the wicketkeeper didn't lose hope and continued working in the gym to be the best version of himself, as revealed by ex-coach Soham Desai.
READ MORE: Greg Chappell hails Rishabh Pant's brilliance vs England
Ex-coach reveals Rishabh Pant's relentless gym routine during CT bench period
The former India strength and conditioning coach Soham Desai revealed that Rishabh Pant went through a relentless gym routine when he was benched for the entirety of the recently concluded Champions Trophy. Check out the tweet below.
India's former Strength & Conditioning coach Soham Desai:
— Mufaddal Vohra (@mufaddal_vohra) June 29, 2025
"Rishabh Pant put himself through a punishing routine when he was benched in the CT. He did the most intense sessions. He dragged me into the gym whenever he was free. He didn't care about fatigue or workload". (TOI). pic.twitter.com/fInqAHsWCE
Desai said that Pant worked hard in the gym and didn't care about workload or fatigue, as he wanted to prove his worth once again in the national setup.
Speaking to the Times of India, Desai said, "He did the most intense sessions, day in and day out. He dragged me into the gym whenever he was free. He didn’t care about fatigue or workload programmes. All he said was he needed to keep working on himself."
MORE: "I genuinely thought…" Captain Rohit on Pant's injury break in T20 WC Final
"On the day of the final, he came to me with some kind of guilt in his mind and asked if he could take the day off. I said it was high time that he did. Pant has so much in reserve that he will be fine for at least a year without having to do anything extraordinary," Desai added.
After having a rough Indian Premier League (IPL) 2025, Pant is back at what he does best, as he became only the second wicketkeeper-batsman in the history of the game to hit centuries in both innings of a Test match.
He also surpassed the legendary MS Dhoni as the wicketkeeper batsman with the most number of Test centuries for India.