Indian cricket team’s star wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant updated his fans with a major step in his recovery on Friday. He shared a video of him on social media wherein he can be seen walking without any crutches or support for the first time in a while.

The 25-year-old is on the journey of recovery following a severe car crash last year in which he had a near-death experience. Pant’s car collided with a road divider on the Delhi-Dehradun highway on December 30, 2022. 

On May 5, he shared a video on his Instagram in which he is seen first walking a few steps with a crutch and then throwing it away to walk without any support. He captioned the video, Happy no more crutches day!

Watch the video here:

Indian cricket team’s all-rounder Hardik Pandya commented on the post with a fire emoticon, while cricketer Suryakumar Yadav commented that Spidey is back and wished more power to him.

Former Indian bowler Sreesanth also wrote in the comments, keep believing, love you brother. All his fans and followers also showered their love and blessings in the comments and were delighted with his recovery.

Pant had been severely injured but was able to survive because of his presence of mind and alertness. He had immediately jumped out of his car, after hitting the divider, and the car had gone up in flames in the nick of time.

He had his treatments at Kokilaben Dhirubhai Ambani Hospital in Mumbai. Since being discharged from the hospital in January, Pant has consistently uploaded photos and videos on his social media to keep the fans updated about his recovery steps and to provide health updates.

Pant has been the captain of the Delhi Capitals team in IPL and despite his injury, he still remains an important member of the team, watching their matches and overlooking their training sessions. In his absence, Australian cricketer David Warner has been given the captaincy duties for the Delhi Capitals in the IPL.

Rishabh Pant has been one of India’s star players across all the game formats, and his absence has saddened the entire team as well as the fans. However, fans are eagerly waiting for his complete recovery and will be eagerly waiting for his return to the pitch.

Cricket legend Sourav Ganguly on Friday gave a measured take on the ongoing wrestlers’ protest saying that he doesn’t know have complete knowledge of the matter.

Reacting to the ongoing protest by star Indian wrestlers who have accused Wrestling Federation of India (WFI) chief and BJP MLA Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh of sexually abusing female wrestlers, including an underage grappler, the former Indian skipper, while remaining tight-lipped about the whole affair said: “Let them fight their battle. I don’t know what’s happening there.”

Ganguly said he knows only as much as he has read about the matter in newspapers, adding that in the sports world, one shouldn’t talk about things that they don’t have the complete knowledge of.

The World Cup-winning cricket captain hoped that the matter gets resolved soon as the wrestlers have brought numerous accolades and won many medals for the nation at the international scene.

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Indian wrestling stars, including household names such as Bajrang Punia, Vinesh Phogat, Sakshi Malik, and others are protesting at the Jantar Mantar in national capital New Delhi, demanding action against WFI president and BJP leader Brij Bhushan Sharan Singh for alleged sexual abuse of female wrestlers.

On Wednesday, IOA President P.T Usha met the protesting wrestlers who are demanding Singh’s arrest.

On Thursday, Congress leader Rahul Gandhi launched a scathing attack against the BJP after the Delhi Police allegedly “manhandled” protesting wrestlers at the Jantar Mantar on late Wednesday night.

Taking to Twitter, Rahul Gandhi while terming Prime Minister Narendra Modi’s flagship ‘Beti Bachao’ program as “just a hogwash”, said that such behavior with players who have represented the country at the international level is highly shameful

The Gandhi scion also claimed that the BJP never shies away from “unleashing atrocities at the daughters of India.”

The alleged misbehavior by the Delhi Police with the protesting wrestlers evoked widespread ire and criticism with Chief Minister Arvind Kejriwal terming the incident as “very sad and shameful” and saying that “arrogance has rigged the mind” of the ruling BJP.

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Two-time Olympian Vinesh Phogat on Thursday broke down and alleged that drunk police officials attacked and abused two protesting wrestlers.

In a press conference, Phogat was seen in tears and said some members of the group she is protesting with were roughed up by a cop in the Delhi Police.

Protesting wrestlers attacked by a drunk cop

She further said the area where they are accommodated is filled with water and there was no place to sleep. One police personnel, in an inebriated state, started pushing them when they were bringing cots. Moreover, there were no women police personnel present, Phogat alleged.

The top wrestler broke down during the conference and said the accused, Brij Bhushan, is sleeping peacefully at his home while they are bringing cots and questioned if they win medals to see such days.

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Watch the video here:

A scuffle broke out between Delhi Police and protesting wrestlers late at night at Jantar Mantar. In the viral video, some of the protestors can be heard accusing police personnel of attacking two wrestlers under the influence of alcohol. The accused cop can be seen sitting in the video and the wrestlers alleged that his colleagues were mute spectators.

Following the incident, Delhi Police promised to closely examine the CCTV footage of the protest area and investigate the allegations. The Delhi Police also said the footage of each CCTV camera will be examined frame by frame and high-definition CCTV cameras have been installed at the protest site.

Earlier, the Supreme Court directed Delhi Police to file an FIR against Wrestlers Feredation of India President Brij Bhushan Singh. The top wrestlers of India have accused Singh of sexually and physically assaulting the players.

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