'The road to recovery has begun'

India wicketkeeper-batter Rishabh Pant, who survived a horrific car crash last month, on Monday, gave thanks to fans, teammates and doctors in his first official statement since the accident.

"I am humbled and grateful for all the support and good wishes. I am glad to let you know that my surgery was a success. The road to recovery has begun and I am ready for the challenges ahead. Thank you to the BCCI, Jay Shah, and government authorities for their incredible support. From the bottom of my heart, I also would like to thank all my fans, teammates, doctors, and the physios for your kind words and encouragement. Looking forward to seeing you all on the field,” Pant posted on his official Twitter handle.

Pant survived a horrifying car crash on NH-58 on December 30, 2022, when he was driving back home from Delhi to Rourkee. He was first admitted in a hospital in Dehradun and then shifted to Mumbai, where he had three surgeries -- two on knee and one on ankle. He is expected to be out for one year.

The 25-year-old suffered injuries to his ligament muscles and was airlifted from Dehradun at the BCCI's behest. He was later operated upon on supervision of Dr Dinshaw Pardiwala, one of BCCI's empanelled surgeons.

Pant is already ruled out of the IPL, and it is learnt that he would be out for most part of 2023 including the ODI World Cup in India in October-November.