India’s newly appointed Test vice-captain, Rishabh Pant, appears to be in sublime touch ahead of the five-match Test series against England, beginning on 20 June. During a recent training session at the Kent County Ground, the explosive wicketkeeper-batter put on a power-hitting display, sending multiple balls soaring well beyond the boundary.

Pant’s towering sixes made quite an impression -- some landing on rooftops, balconies, and even in the front yards of nearby government buildings.

A local resident, speaking to the media, summed up the atmosphere: "This is the kind of tale you usually hear in Indian mohallas, kids breaking windows with tennis ball sixes. Only difference is, this time it's not kids. It's Rishabh Pant."

One such hit left a ball dangling from a balcony shade. Due to local regulations, Indian team support staff were unable to retrieve it without prior clearance. A turbaned official was later seen securing permission to enter the premises and retrieve the ball from the residential quarters.

Pant’s display of form comes as a welcome sign for Indian fans, especially as he steps into a leadership role. With Virat Kohli, Rohit Sharma, and R Ashwin having recently announced their retirement from Test cricket, the upcoming series marks a new era -- with Shubman Gill taking over as captain and Pant named his deputy.

Chief selector Ajit Agarkar endorsed the decision, saying, "Pant is one of our best batters in Test cricket over the last four-five years. A wicketkeeper can see the game well and that's why he is Shubman's deputy."

Despite the encouraging signs in the red-ball format, Pant is coming off a disappointing IPL 2025 campaign. Captaining the Lucknow Super Giants (LSG), his side finished a modest seventh on the points table.

Reflecting on LSG’s season, Pant admitted: "Eventually, you have to play 40 overs of good cricket, 20 overs will definitely not save you in a T20 game, and that's been our story."

"There were lot of injury concerns before the tournament, you can see that that is something that hurt us going through the season," he added.